


Where Our Crossroads Meet

by EmpressArianda



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: After ReMind DLC, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Big Brother Yozora, Big Brother Yozora?, Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, M/M, MoM Being MoM, Not Beta Read - We Die Like Mne, Protective Riku (Kingdom Hearts), Slightly - Freeform, Snarky Roxas is Best Roxas, Then This Guy Shows Up, Yozora is Just Trying to Live His Life, everyone is so done
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:39:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 88,004
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23208631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmpressArianda/pseuds/EmpressArianda
Summary: Yozora has been searching for months. Searching for a savior. Searching for the truth. Now that search has led him to rumors of a mysterious crystal formation hidden in the darkest part of his city. What he finds is not what he expects, but perhaps more than what he could have dreamed of. With his city slowly fading away, he doesn't have much time left. His truth is out there. Isn't it...?After a year of waiting, for a sign, for a clue, just for an end, Riku is given one last thread of hope. A mysterious world has been found, one that no one has ever traveled to before but has inexplicably appeared in both his and Kairi's dreams. Although nothing is known of this world, Riku is certain of one thing. This is where he will find what has been lost for so long, what his heart wishes for so desperately. And he will not let it slip away. Not this time, not again.
Relationships: Kairi & Riku & Sora (Kingdom Hearts), Minor or Background Relationship(s), Riku & Roxas (Kingdom Hearts), Riku & Sora (Kingdom Hearts), Riku & Xion (Kingdom Hearts), Riku & Yozora (Kingdom Hearts), Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts), Sora & Yozora (Kingdom Hearts)
Comments: 210
Kudos: 322





	1. Part One

_**Part I: Under the Night Sky** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story will contain two parts with consistent uploads on Wednesday until the end of part one. There will probably be a one to two week break between the end of part one and the beginning of part two, but otherwise the release schedule will be consistent.
> 
> I'm excited to share this bit of story with you. It's just a little fun I've had while dreaming about the next game. I hope you all enjoy! 
> 
> Cheers~


	2. A Crystal Throne

There was a difference between rumors and legends. Most of the time. 

Parsing through one or the other was always the tricky part. In recent times, he’d learned to read the subtle differences, the small indications that revealed their truth. It had become a necessary part of his quest. After all, he was hardly doing more than chasing fairy tales. So when word came around the capitol that there was a fountain of power hidden somewhere in the darkest parts of the city, those sections that had long faded into the shadow, it piqued his interest enough to warrant an investigation. 

Further questioning revealed that it wasn’t actually a fountain of power, but rather a crystal that called dark creatures to it. Some figured it was the source of the shadows that had taken over the city. Others said its disappearance had led to the darkness. Either way, there was one absolute that everyone agreed upon: whatever this crystal may be, it held sway over a vast power that could tip the balance between the light and dark. 

It was as close as they had ever gotten to confirmation of their greatest wishes. 

With what little knowledge they had, the three geared up and headed for the dark heart of the shadowed city. 

\- - -

It was never an easy time navigating the dark parts of the city. The monsters that roamed there were much stronger than any that wandered beyond the Boundary. Over time, the roadways and paths had become a jumbled mess of crumbled pavement and concrete, liable to break apart under foot or tire. Buildings had toppled, leaving piles of broken concrete and rebar, while others had begun to lean, as if the weight of this place was slowly pulling them to the graveyard below. Dead powerlines hung limply overhead, tangled, torn. Cars long rusted and crushed lay as relics of a time now passed. Phone booths silent, still. Small items littered the streets. Backpacks. Shoes. A doll missing an arm. This city was crumbled and fallen, covered in the misty shroud that hung over it all. 

The worst was simply the memories. This place hung heavy with the broken hopes and dreams of those that had once walked these streets. People had lived here. People had died here. People had lost everything here. Sometimes, they would cross a sign that was still lit up, advertising the newest video game or guiding the masses to a once-popular restaurant. All of it meant nothing now. It had all faded to scattered dust and a darkness that dripped with malice. 

The physical effects of fighting monsters and being enshrouded in the dark for so long were nothing to the mental fatigue that soon overtook them. No matter how determined he may be, he was still struck by the cold, hollow feeling of this place. The emptiness that rung with the lingering presences of all the people he had failed once before. It was hard to imagine their suffering, but here, he felt it as an ache that dragged at his bones and wearied his heart. But he had to go on. He had a mission to fulfill. Something to recover. 

This crystal was the best lead they’d gotten in months. He wasn’t about to let it slip away. 

“Yozora!” 

The voice caught him off guard, causing him to turn sharply. Aegis was watching him, an untrusting gleam in his eye. 

“You’re fading away,” he said. 

Surprised, Yozora raised his hand, saw the trailing edges of darkness clinging to his gauntlet. “Oh,” he made a fist, shook off the last touches of shadow. “It won’t happen again.”

“See that it doesn’t,” Magia sounded slightly irritated, as if he had better things to do than follow him into the most dangerous parts of the city. “It would be hell to explain if we lost you in all of this.”

“Don’t worry,” Yozora led them onward. “You know I’m not going to fade away here. I have work to do.” 

They continued on in silence. Silence was better. It attracted less monsters. The lights they wore also discouraged attacks, but they still happened from time to time. By then, they had a smooth system for dealing with the hostile environment they traversed. Magia could spot the monsters coming. Aegis would stop them or trap them. Yozora would eliminate them. Easy. Nothing ever got close enough to do any real damage. 

The rumors led them to some of the oldest parts of the city, the places where the darkness was deepest. Their lights didn’t quite cut through the shadows and it was getting harder and harder for Magia to spot the monsters before they arrived. Yozora traded his crossbow for his sword. Aegis kept a little closer to them both. It was starting to get dangerous. That’s how they knew they were close. 

They didn’t realize just how close until the last monster attack. Nobody saw the attack coming, not until the monster had its teeth latched into Magia’s shoulder. His cry of pain alerted the other two, who stood ready as the monster reared itself up, a thing of tangled shadow given form with hollow white eyes and gleaming red teeth. Although it was vaguely humanoid in figure, it was anything but. It was like a nightmare turned reality, its jaws a steel trap closed tightly over Magia’s shoulder. 

“Go!” Aegis shouted, turning to keep their back. The monsters never hunted alone. If this one was that close, then there would be others sneaking in even closer. 

Yozora rushed forward to help Magia, stopped when he spotted the slight sheen from another monster’s eyes. His crossbow fired red bolts into the darkness, lighting up the surrounding area in an eerie glow, casting light like blood along the crouched form of a second and third monster. Another shot landed between the second monster’s eyes just as the third launched itself with a shrill shriek toward Yozora. His sword cut downward, Yozora felt reality shift with his blade, and the monster simply broke apart before him, melting into goo that drained into the earth, leaving only an oily smudge behind.

With those two taken care of, Yozora turned to finally reach Magia only to find the mage had jammed his rapier into its eye and had extricated himself from its mouth. He stumbled back as the monster fell apart, Yozora hurrying to grab his arm and pull it over his shoulder. 

“Blasted creatures,” Magia hissed as Yozora helped him closer to Aegis. Aegis was battling another two monsters, but they only lasted a second longer when Yozora turned his crossbow to them. 

Once the monsters were gone, Aegis turned to check over Magia. 

“We have to go,” the guard said immedaitely. It wasn’t a request. 

And yet, Yozora tightened his grip on his sword. They had come so far. They were so close. Were they really going to just turn back now? How could that even be an option? 

_I could send Aegis and Magia back over the Boundary._ Yozora knew he was strong. Strong enough to hold off most monster attacks. And even if he was only able to go for a little longer, if only another hour or so, then maybe he would be more satisfied. His priority had to be, and always would be, the safety of his companions. He had to get Magia medical attention. That didn’t mean he had to turn around as well. 

The thought lingered on his tongue just long enough that Aegis snapped, “No, you are not going by yourself!” 

“But I—”

“We have to get Magia help,” Aegis lowered his voice and a groan from Magia confirmed he was suffering. A bite from one of those monsters almost always led to infected wounds. The sooner they got him out of the darkness the better. 

Still, he hesitated for just a little too long. 

“Commander,” Magia shrugged off Aegis’ arm, gritting his teeth as he stood before Yozora. Magia had always been tough. Always putting himself in the line of danger for others, especially if that other was Yozora. He’d given an oath to serve and protect him, and he kept that oath at his heart in everything he did. Even then, when he stood wounded, clearly hurt and bleeding, he hefted his rapiers confidentially. “I can still fight. I’ll follow you for a bit longer.”

It would have been too simple to just allow Magia to come with them. To continue on into the darkness knowing he was hurt, even if he said it was okay. There had to be a limit. Yozora had a responsibility to look after his wellbeing just as much as the oath Magia had taken compelled him to protect Yozora. Yes, Magia may follow him, even if it meant going gladly to his death, but that didn’t mean Yozora had the right to drag him to the executioner’s block, nor did he want to. And besides all that, the longer they stayed there, the worse the rolling pit of worry in Yozora’s stomach became. 

As reluctant as he was to simply leave, he turned to scan the darkness around them. “We’ll go for another five blocks,” he announced. “If we still don’t see any signs of what we’re looking for, we’ll head back.” 

“Yes, Commander,” Magia said while Aegis grumbled something better left unheard. 

Yozora waited for a signal for Magia before he continued down the street. This time, he took the lead, letting Aegis linger near Magia. He dared any monsters to come near them. Dared them to try anything. On a good day, he was dangerous. With his friends hurt, he was a force of nature, of this very reality. Nothing could stop him. That was a promise. 

They ventured a bit farther into the shadows, Yozora on high alert for any more monsters. Chances were those in the area had all come to attack them at once. In theory, they wouldn’t run into anything else for another six or seven blocks. That’s why five was safe, even if it wasn’t all that much farther. Even if five more blocks wouldn’t completely quench his need to discover the truth, it was something to help with the ache rising in his chest. The whispers heard along the street kept echoing in his ear, words that had drawn him to this place and now kept him here, searching, even as his companions’ lives were at risk. For as much as he wanted to keep searching, there had to be a line in the sand. With Magia hurt, he had to resolve himself to potentially finding nothing more, if only to save his friend. While it was unlikely they were going to run into anything else, Yozora still kept a close eye out. Stronger monsters lingered this deep in the darkness. With Magia hurt, they would be in trouble if they ran into one. 

As they wandered forward, Yozora kept a close eye on the city blocks, counting them off. They passed through three without any signs of monsters or anything out of the ordinary. At the fourth block, he paused, aware that something was shifting in the darkness. Behind him, Aegis and Magia gazed around uneasily, no doubt sensing what he had felt. Carefully, he unclipped the light from his jacket and shone it around the ruins. Buildings sagged into the street. Vehicles left abandoned and rotting. Crumbled infrastructure all that remained of a once-functioning city. 

And… something else. Something that moved just out of his line of sight, taunting him, calling to him. Yozora glanced to Aegis and Magia, both of whom looked grim and cautious, but nodded when they noticed his gaze. Slowly, they took a few more steps forward, ever watchful of what was lurking nearby. 

At the corner of the fourth block, they found themselves faced with the ruins of a museum. The name of it had long ago faded away. Its beautiful entrance, all white pillars and carved steps, had toppled and collapsed. A hole in the side provided glimpses of long hallways and razed statues. Nothing left of value. Only the empty places where things had been lost. 

Until, that is, he saw something move. Something that was not a monster. Not any of the ones he had fought before. In the faint flicker of movement, he thought he saw red eyes and a swollen body low to the ground. Or perhaps something that zipped through the air. Both?

“What was that?” Aegis hissed. 

Yozora held up his hand for silence. Best not to attract any more attention. But he did step forward, careful to find solid purchase on the broken concrete. Behind him, the guard and the mage followed along.

Inside, they found evidence of lost artwork and ripped banners. This place had once been a hall of beauty and expression, a place people came to find their voices in statues or their hearts in paintings. Now, all that was left was the smell of dust and decay. 

While Aegis and Magia navigated their way into the building, Yozora took a few more steps inside, searching for signs of whatever it was he had seen. Nothing was obviously out of place, not that it would be easy to tell amongst the rubble. There were no distinct glowing red eyes. Nothing that flew through the air or crawled along the ground. Still, he kept on high alert. 

“This is the last place we’ll search,” he promised, checking on Magia again. The mage had begun to sag slightly, but he kept a sharp eye about him. Searching for whatever had drawn them to this place.

“Let’s just get this over with. I’m ready to be home,” Aegis grumbled. Yozora agreed, his body heavy with the sorrow of lingering in the dark for too long. Still, he hefted his crossbow and continued onward. 

The building itself was not all that large, consisting of a few galleries long since emptied. Still, everything was unmoving. There wasn’t even a breeze to stir up dust and debris. There was simply nothing. After they had searched the building twice, Yozora let his crossbow hang in his hand. He was ready to admit he must have just seen a trick in the shadows when Magia called out from across the room.

“Commander, there’s something here.”

He was standing in front of one of the few paintings left on the wall. It was faded and dirty, but from what Yozora could tell it depicted the moon rising over a desolate wasteland. But there was something strange about the moon. It curved in places the moon shouldn’t. Although covered in grime, Yozora would have sworn it was shaped like a heart, hanging over a place that felt like a graveyard. The sight of the painting unsettled something within him, something that wanted to slash the painting to ribbons and burn it all away. 

As distracted as he was by the unusual artwork, he didn’t fail to notice that the wall it was placed on seemed to swing outward as if on a hinge. Only a small crack was visible, but it was clear this wall hid a trick door behind it. Rubble obstructed the way, so Yozora gestured for Aegis to help him make a path. Magia stood nearby, hovering as Aegis and Yozora worked. Yozora could tell he was anxious by the tapping of his fingers on his leg. 

Once the way was clear, Aegis stood ready and Yozora hefted his crossbow once again, gripping the edge of the door. A nod from Aegis and Magia, and Yozora set his feet into the ground, letting a breath out between his teeth. He took in another breath, yanked the door open, and aimed his crossbow. A complete darkness spread before them. It was as if the entrance the wall had hidden was simply a pool of black ink. Nothing stirred beneath the surface. No light could cut through. It was still and quiet and empty.

Yozora didn’t trust it for a moment. 

He shifted his grip on his sword, tightened his finger in the trigger. A bolt shot along a dark stairwell. As it did, the red glow of the bolt lit up dozens and dozens of red eyes, staring up at the three of them. Shock and cold struck Yozora at the sight of so many glaring up at them. Even Aegis muttered an oath under his breath and Magia let out a hiss of air between his teeth. A chattering noise rose up from the tunnel, Yozora quickly backpedaling as several creatures rolled from the darkness. They emerged into the light cast from their weapons and their flashlights, their forms something both disturbing and strange. Each creature was brightly colored in the light, even if their coloring consisted of sinister reds and violent purples and abyssal blacks. Teeth and talons and claws and spines and horns threatened. Their eyes each shone red. Along each of their bodies, they wore a strange symbol. Yozora glimpsed it again and again as the creatures hurried toward them. A heart sprouting dark wings. Why did they all have this same mark? 

There was no time to question it. 

Yozora set his feet into the ground. “We’ve got a fight!” He sounded ridiculous even saying it. These things were obviously dangerous. He just didn’t know why. “Get ready! Aegis!” 

At the call of his name, Aegis summoned a shield between Magia and the creatures. Magia dropped to one knee and began an incantation, keeping his voice low as Aegis and Yozora stepped up to defend him. 

“You take care of the little one,” Aegis joked. Now was hardly the time for it, but Yozora had long since learned to ignore his comments. 

This time, he simply said, “Don’t wander.” 

He drew first blood as always, summoning a reticle that sent a laser snapping through the first of the creatures, who let out a snarl of pain before fading away. Unlike the monsters they usually fought, these creatures broke apart into a pop of shadow, thinning into simply nothing. When the first of the creatures fell, the rest surged forward. Aegis cut his way through several, dug his heels into the ground and braced his halberd against the charge of one of the larger creatures, which snarled and snapped at him with knife-like teeth. Yozora took the chance to pick off several of the smaller creatures with his crossbow, raising his sword once they got closer. His sword spun and hummed as energy coursed through it, forming the blade.

The creatures themselves weren’t particularly strong. But there were many of them. An overwhelming number poured from the mouth of the door, slithering toward them just as fast as Yozora and Aegis could cut them down. Both kept an even head in the fight. Neither worried over the end. They knew it was coming. They knew from the soft, even tones of Magia’s incantation. They knew as it rose, as Magia’s voice took on a more desperate pitch, that it was time to retreat. Aegis threw a shield in front of himself and raced backward. Yozora drew all the creatures toward where he was standing, keeping an ear to the spell being cast. At the last possible moment, he let himself fade away.

There was a tear in the veil of reality. Long ago, Yozora had discovered it. He’d discovered it and spent years coaxing it to open for him, learned to slip beyond the reach of reality, to change it to his liking in small but significant ways. When he faded away, the veil opened for him and he slipped beyond it, dropping back into reality to stand beside Aegis and Magia. As soon as Yozora reappeared beside them, Magia stood, raised a hand, and snapped his fingers. 

Light flared, blinding both Yozora and Aegis, who ducked behind their hands. When it faded, all that was left of the creatures were the last fading trails of dust, Magia’s attack leaving a singeing warmth to the air. 

Aegis took a step amongst the remnants of their enemies, gesturing to the empty and quiet space around them. “Have to admit,” he laughed, “you do good work for mage.” 

Magia readjusted his hat. “I don’t know what you mean.” 

“Enough,” Yozora stepped forward before they could continue. He’d heard it time and time again and now was not the time to hear it once more. The pitch darkness of the doorway had faded. It was open now, leading to a staircase leading into the depths of the earth. 

Magia peered down the stairs dubiously. “A basement? Here?”

The guard pushed his way past Magia and Yozora. “Better just to look for ourselves than to ask questions!” 

He took the first steps carefully, then charged downward with reckless abandon. Yozora and Magia shared a look, with Magia shrugging helplessly before following him down. Yozora checked over his shoulder once more before doing the same. 

The stairs seemed comically long. Aegis joked once, twice about it. Even Magia said something about this being extremely unorthodox. The longer they traveled, the more something stirred in Yozora’s stomach. Staircases like these were common enough in the fairy tales of his childhood. It was always at the end of such things that one found what they were ultimately looking for. This was almost too good to be true. 

Eventually, the stairs gave way to a narrow, dark hallway. The walls suggested it was built from marble. Yozora had a feeling it was not. It was almost as if it had been carved from crystal. 

“This is it,” he said. Both Aegis and Magia eyed their surroundings warily, as if they’d had similar thoughts. 

Farther and farther they traveled, into depths that seemed impossible. But they continued on, never once entertaining the idea of turning back. Even the blood from Magia’s shoulder seemed to fade as they went onward. They were so close. It simply wasn’t an option to turn around now. Whatever end this was, and Yozora was convinced this was an end, they had to see it out. 

That end came quite suddenly, when Aegis turned a corner and froze, letting out another oath under his breath. Magia and Yozora came to a stop beside him, beholding what had shocked him so, the sight causing them both to bask in awe. 

The room opened into a cavernous space, something so large and wide and empty it felt oddly claustrophobic. An endless ceiling rose above them, speaking to the depth they had gone to reach this place. A single beam of light cut downward, a thin, fragile thing, illuminating a formation at the center of the room. This must have been the crystal people had spoken of. It rose up, fifteen feet tall, a huge thing of curved spines and gilded spikes. The light filtered through it, casting the room in the glow of a myriad of colors. At first, there seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the crystal’s formation, but the longer Yozora stared, the more he began to recognize a familiar form. 

Moving from where he stood around the room, he came to find the front of the crystal, the place where it curved to show its true form. It was a throne. A giant of a throne, something for a deity more than a man. A throne for a legend, perhaps. 

And it sat empty. 

Disappointed ran the length of Yozora’s body, his hands limp at his side. This had all been for nothing. The throne was empty. This was not what he was searching for. Whatever it was, whatever its purpose, he couldn’t even begin to fathom. But he knew it was not the end of his journey. 

Aegis and Magia came to examine the crystal from where he stood, their gazes wide and awed. 

“What is that?” Aegis’ voice caught Yozora’s attention, his finger pointing to something toward the very tip of the crystal. 

Rising above the throne, the crystal spiked upward like a cruel crown resting on a missing head. And yet, when Yozora narrowed his eyes, he could just make out that something seemed suspended within, ringed by the teeth of the giant crown. The light did not shine through it as it did everywhere else. Yet so far up, he couldn’t quite see what it was. 

Without thinking, Yozora took a step forward, reaching forward, brushing a fingertip along the throne’s surface. 

The entire cavern rumbled. 

The light faded. 

“What did you do now?” Aegis groaned. 

Nobody had a chance to retort, as the place where Yozora’s hand had touched the crystal began to fade, curling inward, as if the entire crystal were melting into itself. The three stepped back, watched transfixed as the crystal throne took on a glow brighter than the single beam of light had afforded, traveling up and up and up, until it was ringed in the crown, until the crown was nothing but a bright light, so bright they had to look away. 

Then, all at once, the light was gone. 

Yozora carefully lowered his hand, saw as something dropped from the sky, heading quickly for the ground below. Without thinking, he shifted through the veil, reached forward, reappeared just in time to catch what was falling, and land safely. 

Behind him, he was aware of Aegis and Magia running to see what had happened, but Yozora was struck by what he held in his arms, so much so that he was only broken from his trance when Aegis grabbed his shoulder. 

The guard narrowed his eyes. “What is it?”

Yozora grimaced deeply, turned to show what he held. “It’s a boy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You all know what's going on here =P 
> 
> Stay tuned next week to find out a little more about Yozora's fading city.


	3. A Fading City

Escaping from the darkest part of the city proved extremely difficult with Magia hurt and now an unconscious boy in their care. Aegis was capable of carrying him and defending himself, but he was handicapped while holding the boy. Likewise, Magia was only really able to fight at half his typical capability, if that. To keep his companions out of danger, Yozora took up the point position, charging through any monsters they encountered with a ferocity that had Aegis staring at him in quiet alarm. The encounter with the crystal had invigorated Yozora, had driven him to escape those shadows as quickly as they could. In fact, he pushed so hard that the moment they crossed beyond the relative safety of the Boundary, he collapsed from exhaustion. Aegis made sure they each got back to the capitol, where medics tended to all of them. Magia’s arm was repaired as best it could be and set to rest, Yozora was given stimulants to help with his exhaustion, and Aegis was given a pat on the back and told he’d done an excellent job.

Of all the things Yozora expected to recover, a mysterious boy was both a thrilling development and a puzzling enigma. Who was he? Where did he come from? What had become of that giant crystal? Was it part of the boy or had it been a separate entity? 

Had Yozora finally found the person he’d been seeking? 

The last question bore at his nerves, but it wasn’t one they had been able to answer. Since falling from the crystal, the boy had remained unconscious. He hadn’t responded to any medicine, stimulants, or any other conventional treatments. He hadn’t responded to any unconventional treatments either. He appeared uninjured and didn’t seem to be suffering from magic exhaustion. It was as if he had simply laid down for a nap and now refused to wake up. An aggravating development, but not one that Yozora could do anything about. He simply had to wait. 

Strictly speaking, Yozora wasn’t one to wait patiently. He was a man of action, had been for a long time. The prospect of sitting around doing nothing rattled his nerves. Instead of accepting the situation as it was, he decided he was going to do something about it.

Someone had to know who this boy was. They had heard about the crystal, after all, even though the three had found it hidden in the darkest parts of the city. Surely someone knew who he was. Surely he had a family who was missing him, friends who would recognize him. If they found a name, something with which to identify him, then they might be able to find more clues as to how he had ended up trapped in that crystal. 

Yozora took several militia members with him to scour the streets, arming them with a sketch of the boy and a description of the part of the city he had been found in. For three days they searched and searched and searched. Plenty of people had heard of the mysterious crystal. Nobody recognized the boy. Yozora returned to the grand halls of the capitol day in and day out with nothing to show for it. Day in and day out, he watched the city moving around him while he stood, stuck on this troubling puzzle. 

The capitol remained his haven, even during this most uncertain time. Its impressive spire, Cathedra Veri, towered over the rest of the city. It was supposed to represent the power and peace of those that ruled. It hadn’t meant that in a long time, no matter how long Yozora slaved to keep that image in people’s minds. With their throne empty, with the spire cold and lifeless, it was all he could do to just simply continue on, to convince everyone that the sun would indeed rise one more day. 

This crystal had been his hope, his wish, to finally prove to everyone that the sun wouldn't just rise tomorrow, but that it would continue to rise. And now, all he had was this boy, and whatever this turn of events could mean. And all he could do was wait.

\- - -

At the end of the third day, Yozora visited the boy for the first time. The medics had kept him sequestered away from the noise of the main hospital unit, caring for him in a private ward typically reserved for those worst injured or of high ranking. His room was bright and clean and he was being well cared for by the medics, even as they scrambled to find an answer to his coma. Yozora watched as a medic checked readings off of machines hooked into the bed he was laying on, monitoring his vital functions. The glass that separated him from the room felt flimsy, liable to shatter. He dared not touch it.

As he watched, he heard as someone approached, joined him, knew who it was without having to look. 

“How’s your arm?” Yozora asked.

Magia chuckled, wiggling fingers from the sling across his chest. “Very well, actually. I’ll be back to full strength in a couple of days.” 

“Hopefully by then we’ll have more answers,” Yozora muttered, never taking his eyes off the boy and the medic. 

Magia stepped forward to be in line with him, peering through the glass with an unreadable expression. “Are you worried, Commander?”

Yozora narrowed his focus, didn’t respond. Magia tilted his head slightly, then lifted his undamaged left arm. With a flick of his wrist, the glove on his hand hummed with energy, a holographic interface appearing at the command. Magia used his fingertips to type out something on the screen, information flashing across in blue and red lights. 

“Well his vital signs seem stable and consistent. He shows signs of REM state activity, but no prolonged, trackable cycles.”

Yozora blinked, leaning over Magia’s shoulder to see the full medical data from the ward on his interface. 

“How did you get that?” Yozora turned his own wrist, the interface summoned from his gauntlet. He scrolled through the information he had, but didn’t see a link to the medical ward. “Even I don’t have access to that information.”

Magia rolled his eyes, typed out a command. “Really, all you have to do is ask for help.” 

His gauntlet hummed as it received data, Yozora opening it to reveal Magia had sent him the permissions to access the boy’s medical files. He scrolled through them, but they said nothing more than what Magia had already indicated. 

As he skimmed through the reports, Magia turned a calculating glare through the window. “While I’ve been stuck here, I’ve had a lot of time to do some thinking.”

“Always a dangerous occupation,” Yozora said dryly. 

“Maybe, but there are other answers we should be looking for, things even you haven’t questioned yet, I assume.” Yozora gave Magia a questioning look. The mage’s flamboyant red hair hid one eye, but Yozora didn’t need to see the other to realize the calculating expression darting between them. “What were those strange creatures that were guarding the crystal?”

Yozora grimaced, turned away. It was a question he had asked himself, though not one he had spent much time considering. Those creatures, whatever they had been, were nothing like what they usually fought, nothing like anything he’d ever heard of before. But neither was the crystal nor the boy. This entire situation was unusual. At this point, he knew they had to be prepared for anything, including all the things they couldn’t possibly account for. Even through all their contingency plans, they’d never even considered what would happen if they found someone alive and well within the darkness. They hadn’t extracted anyone alive for months and months now. It hadn’t seemed possible. But now, the impossible was starting to become their daily reality with this boy. Everything Yozora knew about how his city worked hadn’t been true for this boy. And that was perhaps what troubled him most of all. 

When Yozora didn’t speak immediately, Magia brought a hand to his chin in a thoughtful gesture. “We should consider putting security around the room for the safety of the medics.”

“Why’s that? You think the boy will be violent when he wakes up?” Yozora hadn’t thought about what the boy would do when he woke. He had been too wrapped up in the questions he had for the boy to consider much else. 

Magia shook his head. “I highly doubt it. But we should be prepared to face more of those creatures.”

Yozora gave him a puzzled look. “You think they will come here?”

“I’m not entirely convinced they didn’t come from the boy himself.” 

An interesting thought. Yozora turned it over in his head carefully, but the truth of the matter was they simply didn’t know enough to make a judgement one way or the other. 

“And if they didn’t,” Magia continued, “then yes, they may come in search of him.” 

“I don’t think the creatures came from him,” Yozora said slowly, though even as he spoke, he knew he couldn’t be sure. 

Magia, thankfully, did not point this out.

They watched through the glass until the medic had finished his readings and emerged from the room, surprised by who he saw standing outside. He bowed to both Yozora and Magia and gladly gave them all the updated information he had on the boy, even if Yozora had read it as the medic had reported it in time. It seemed he should be able to wake at any moment. So his condition wasn’t strictly medical. It was something else. 

The news didn’t sit well with Yozora. Medical issues they could fix. Anything else became tricky to find, much less to solve. Still, he wasn’t giving up. Not quite yet. 

Once the medic had left, Yozora put a hand on Magia’s unhurt shoulder. “Rest up, my friend. I’m glad you weren’t hurt too badly.”

Magia gave him a crooked smile. “You know I can’t die yet, Commander. I have to be around to keep you from trouble, after all.” 

Yozora snorted. “If that’s what you believe.” Magia chuckled as Yozora walked away. 

He couldn’t just stand there staring at the boy all day. His body ached for action. His mind wished for something to solve. But his heart hurt in a hollow, breathless way that had him asking, Why? 

\- - -

After all the years Yozora had known him, Aegis still had a way of surprising him. For example, after Yozora had spent the afternoon running combat exercises with the drones, he was just about ready to start relaxing when the door to his study was violently kicked in. His first thought was an attack, Revolutionaries, his first action to draw his crossbow and fire a shot. A shield spell stopped his bolt and from the dust, Aegis bellowed out a laugh. 

“I probably deserved that!” He rose up from the cloud to grin at Yozora.

Yozora lowered his crossbow. “You ruined my door.”

“Just keeping you on your toes,” he adjusted his glasses and nodded toward the hallway. “Walk with me for a moment?” 

For a second, Yozora thought about ignoring him. However with his door destroyed, he didn’t have a way to get away from Aegis, who would just keep annoying him until he agreed. It was probably why the guard had destroyed it. He really wanted to talk to Yozora about whatever might be on his mind. There was no getting away from him, so he sighed but followed the guard out along the halls of the capitol. 

Cathedra Veri’s upper spire featured ceiling to floor reinforced windows, giving a breathtaking view of the city below. Yozora often stood at the windows, counting the streets where the sun still shone. This city was beautiful. It always had been. A sprawling playground of high rise buildings, a river of concrete roads, and a tangle of power lines. It was most beautiful at night, when the lights shone along the streets below and the buildings were outlined with neon beams. It stretched nearly as far as the eye could see. 

Nearly. 

There came a point in the city where the streets were steeped in light. A ring that encircled what was left. The light was artificial, powered by huge generators. Even on the darkest nights, there was a beacon of light surrounding them. Beyond that border, there was nothing. Nothing but a writhing cloud of shadow, a darkness that had infected the city. It had started out slow, something that crawled forward but could be outpaced by even the smallest child. Then, the monsters had started to appear and the darkness grew, threatening to swallow everything it touched. In its wake, it left the emptiness and sorrow and grief of what it had destroyed. Now, there was no fighting it. Only staving off the inevitable. The Boundary shrunk almost every day. The darkness was closing in. It was only a matter of time. 

Yozora did not like to see his city fading away, but he stood at those windows and he counted the streets left in the light. He watched as slowly, slowly, his home was overrun. 

Even walking past the windows conjured up the frustration and despair that sometimes threatened to overwhelm him. Having Aegis there helped. The guard seemed to have an infectious optimism about life that kept the dark thoughts away. At least, for a time. Or it could just simply be that Yozora had known him so long he felt somewhat incomplete without the guard at his side. Perhaps it was a combination of things. Either way, even though his study door lay in pieces behind them and the city spread out thin and wavering in front of him, Yozora found he could relax as the guard rambled on about something to do with the new roadway they were building near the capitol. 

“I know it’s supposed to alleviate traffic, but so far all the construction’s done is make everything so much worse!” Aegis put his head in his hand. “If they really wanted to help and they already knew there was a problem, you’d think they would have planned this out better.” 

Yozora shook his head, though declined to comment on it. Construction was about the least of his worries nowadays. He had too much on his mind to worry about something so trivial. 

“Anyway,” Aegis paused to open a door, gesturing Yozora into the room, “I’ve got some things to say. Thought you might want to hear.” 

The room Aegis had led him to was a militia break room. It was empty, but there were cards scattered on a table that suggested a promise to return. Yozora picked up one of the hands, thinking blandly that he would have been quite disappointed if handed these cards, and set them back down. 

“It’s not often you decide to steal me away to discuss something,” he said as Aegis settled in a chair nearby. “Something must be bothering you.” 

“It’s that boy.”

Yozora’s lip twitch upward. “No surprise there. Nothing’s changed. He’s still sleeping.”

“I know. That’s what concerns me.” Aegis crossed his arms, sat tall in his seat. It wasn’t often Yozora saw this serious side of him. He sat across from the guard, wrapping his hands around the armrests, bracing himself, though for what he didn’t know. Aegis watched him closely, noted his rigid posture, but didn’t comment. “Medics have said they don’t know what’s wrong with him. You said you can’t find anyone who knows him. Things aren’t adding up.”

“You’re right. But I don’t know what more we can do except wait for him to wake up.”

“Maybe not, but it still worries me,” Aegis scratched his arm, fingers running along the rolled up sleeves of his jacket. “How is it that so many people knew about the crystal, but no one knows about the boy? How did word of something so deep in the darkness get past the Boundary?”

Yozora considered the questions carefully, though they were already ones he’d thought of before. “Perhaps it was there before the city fell.”

“If that’s true, then we would have heard about it earlier, wouldn’t we have? What’s with the sudden resurgence of information if everyone already knew it was there?” 

That thought hadn’t crossed Yozora’s mind before. It was a good question. He’d known the city so well, even before it started to fall. Surely he would have known about the crystal before, perhaps even seen it, if it had been of any significance before. It had been several months since the fall of that part of the city. Why were they just now hearing about the crystal? 

“Do you think someone’s planting the rumors?” Yozora asked.

Aegis set his teeth and growled. “I hope not. What plan would it service? To lure people into the darkness? To get the crystal out? Maybe to get us to save the boy?”

“You think he’s trouble, too,” Yozora completed his thought, though he was taken off guard when Aegis chuckled. 

“Let me guess, Magia doesn’t trust him, huh?” Aegis sat forward, but his gaze was elsewhere. “It’s not that I don’t trust the boy. I have no reason to trust or distrust him at this point. But I am worried that someone is using him for some greater plot. That he didn’t just mysteriously end up where he was on coincidence. Things are working out too smoothly for that.” 

He did have a point. Though Yozora could hardly think of why someone would use the boy. What purpose did he serve? So far, there didn’t seem anything out of the ordinary with him, other than the fact that he’d appeared trapped within a crystal. 

Or maybe. Maybe it wasn’t about the boy at all. Maybe it was about the crystal after all.

Yozora let out a frustrated noise. There was just too much they couldn’t know for certain. All this speculating was irritating him. 

“Do you think it was a mistake to take him in, then?”

Aegis shook his head. “I think he needed help. I think he may have some answers. But I also think we should be careful. There’s something bigger going on here. I don’t know what it could be, but I’d be shocked if this was the end of it.” 

And he was right, of course. This was the beginning of something. Something none of them could know for certain. 

Another question came to mind amongst all of Aegis’ theories. Something that worried him more than he wanted to admit. “Do you think,” he met Aegis’ eyes, wanting to know exactly how the guard reacted, “that he’s part of the Revolutionaries?” A skeptical look crossed Aegis’ face. “Or that he’s connected to the monsters?” 

At this, Aegis grimaced. He sat back, closed his eyes. “I don’t know for sure. Doubt the Revolutionaries would do something like this. They want nothing to do with anything that’s been to the dark side of the city. Whether or not he’d got some sort of connection to the monsters is yet to be seen, though I don’t think it’s that either. However,” he opened his eyes, blazing with an emotion Yozora couldn’t quite place. “It wouldn’t shock me at all if whoever’s behind all this has got something to do with that shadow taking over the city.”

Of all the things Yozora expected to hear, this was not one of them. To think the boy had connections to whatever was behind the darkness? He remembered what Magia had said about security, suddenly wished he’d agreed to that proposition. Then again, what if the boy was just a victim in all of this? He didn’t seem dangerous. However he’d done nothing to prove his loyalties one way or the other. They’d have to be careful. 

While Yozora thought, Aegis rumbled to his feet. “Just something to consider. We might have a big fight on our hands soon. I don’t want to see something bad happen to the boy, but I also don’t want to see something bad happen to you.” 

The implication in Aegis’ words crashed through all of Yozora’s thinking. He raised his eyes, not bothering to hide his displeasure. "My safety is not the prime concern here. We have a city to protect.”

Aegis was never one to be intimidated by Yozora, even if he should have been, and he certainly wasn’t in that moment. In fact, he dared to raise an eyebrow at his commander. “You know,” he said eventually, “you may not be king, but you’re the best we’ve got. Can’t afford to lose you, too.” 

A stab of panic and anger raced through Yozora, had him leaping out of his seat before he realized what he was doing. Aegis looked just as startled as Yozora felt, but he turned quickly, covered up his surprise by shouting over his shoulder, “I want my door fixed, Captain. Don’t make me wait!” 

He hurried through the door, let it fall back into its lock behind him, walked away from Aegis, tried not to look like he was running away. Even if that’s exactly what was happening. 

Behind him, he heard the break room door open, heard Aegis’ patient steps following him, until Yozora stepped a litter faster, and the guard let him walk away. 

\- - -

Seven days after finding the boy, Yozora finally let his mind entertain the idea that had been crowing for his attention since he’d collapsed back on the light side of the Boundary. 

A regent was a person who stood in place of someone else. Someone who took on the burden so someone else didn’t have to. Someone who kept the position expecting its rightful holder to one day take it. Someone who waited for the correct time and person and place for things to finally fall into alignment. A regent was not something Yozora had ever imagined being. The title commander came easier, felt better. He’d been a commander before anything else and he would continue to be a commander after this was all over and done. But, for the time, he was also something else. A regent. Waiting for the right person to reclaim what was truly theirs. When that time came, he would gladly stand aside, let the gap be filled by who was deserving and righteous. How he ached for that moment. His entire body felt electric at the thought. This was a burden he could hold, but not one he could bear. His entire quest was leading him onward to find the person who would step up and beyond what he ever could.

The true king of this city. The person who could break the shadow and reclaim the city as it had once been. Yozora was more than happy to lead on the front lines, but he couldn’t be that person. He wasn’t strong enough. 

At first, he had thought the crystal was a clue to finding who this person could be. Whatever it was, if it held such extraordinary power, it must be linked to something that could defeat the darkness. However, the reality of the situation was that they’d come to find power and they’d left with a seemingly ordinary boy. But did that mean his quest was over? Could such a plain boy really be who he was looking for? It seemed unlikely. Then again, the entire situation had been just strange enough for him to wonder.

Something else was going on. Something greater than he could ever imagine. 

And so, Yozora kept watch over the boy, silently wondering if he was the person they had all been waiting for. If this truly was the king they were expecting, then Yozora would do everything he could to protect and serve him. If it wasn’t, then hopefully he would have some clues as to who they were really looking for. It didn’t seem possible that he wouldn’t know something. All his hopes and wishes were resting on one sleeping boy. Yozora really didn’t know what to think of that. 

Still, he couldn’t have been prepared for when Magia knocked on his new study door, opening it before Yozora called to him. 

“He’s awake,” he said, and the world only then seemed to remember to breathe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you who want to know, Cathedra Veri is very loosely based on the latin phrase for "Seat of Truth." 
> 
> Next week: Well... y'all can guess what happens next week =P


	4. A Warm Smile

There were so many expectations that Yozora held for the moment he finally got to speak with the boy that he nearly didn’t enter the room at all. There was so much he wanted to say. So much he wanted to hear. It was unfair to have such expectations laid at the feet of a boy who had spent the last week in a coma and who knows how long before that trapped in a crystal. But Yozora could wait no longer.

Magia followed him as they raced along Cathedra Veri’s halls, arriving in record time in the medical ward. While Magia hurried straight into the room, Yozora found himself pausing, breathing in deeply, before braving those final steps. 

He entered the room and his blue and red eyes met two crystalline blue ones, eyes that looked a bit startled at first, but quickly faded into a warmth and cheer that froze Yozora in the doorframe. 

“Hello!” The boy was the first to speak. “Who are you?” 

This time, it was Yozora’s turn to be surprised. It had been a long time since he’d met someone who didn’t instantly know who he was. Being the commander of the militia forces and the current regent meant he was simply the most well-known, most recognized person within the city. Long had gone the days where Yozora had had to explain just who he was and what he did. Everyone already knew him, and most people could pick him out of a crowd thanks to his heterochromatic eyes. Yet this boy looked at him and not only didn’t know who he was, but Yozora had a funny feeling even if he told him, the boy wouldn’t recognize his name. 

“Excuse me, Commander,” the medic in the room bowed deeply. “Apologies, we weren’t expecting you to arrive so suddenly. We have some tests we need to conduct.” 

The implication was simple. He didn’t have a lot of time to speak with the boy before he’d be whisked away and who knew when the medics would allow Yozora to see him again. He didn’t have a lot of time. But there were still a few things Yozora needed to know. 

The boy was looking curiously at the medic as he spoke with Yozora. “What tests?” 

The medic eyed him. “You’ve been sleeping for a week. We need to find out why.”

“A week?!” The boy laid back with a dramatic flop of his arms. “Oh man, she’s going to kill me.”

“She who?” It wasn’t exactly the first question Yozora wanted to ask, but this was the first time they had received any clues to the identity of the boy. He couldn’t let the opportunity of learning any small morsel of detail about him slip away. 

The boy considered Yozora, sat up slowly. His eyebrow met, his hand to his chin. “You know... I can’t remember.” 

Yozora and Magia shared a look. 

“Just a few minutes,” Yozora implored the medic, who nodded. 

“We have some things to set up. When we’re ready, we’ll come collect him.” 

“Very well.” And with that, the medic slipped from the room. Yozora nodded to Magia, who understood without saying a word, closing the two of them in the room together. He didn’t reappear on the other side of the glass, but Yozora knew he would be standing outside the door, listening to their conversation. 

The boy remained calm while people filed out of the room, only raising an eyebrow curiously when Magia shut the door and it was only the two of them left. Yozora cleared his throat, coming to stand at the foot of his bed. 

“My apologies, you must be confused,” Yozora put his hand to his chest. “My name is Yozora. I command the militia forces around the city.” He skipped over being regent for now. It wasn’t important, nor would it be important unless the boy knew anything about their true king. 

The boy tilted his head slightly, his expression widening into a huge, easy smile. It was obviously a practiced motion, something that came so naturally. The warmth Yozora had seen in his eyes touched his smile as well, reached out to invite Yozora to relax, to enjoy a moment of comfort. Yozora did not drop his guard, though he found himself inexplicably drawn to the boy’s smile. 

“My name is Sora! It’s nice to meet you.” 

“You as well, Sora,” the name came easily to him, as if familiar and comforting. Just who was this boy? 

“Uh, sorry if this is kind of weird to ask,” the boy glanced around the room, taking it in as if he were just realizing where he was for the first time, “but where am I? How’d I get here?”

“You’re in the medical ward of Cathedra Veri.” 

“Catha— what?” 

Yozora couldn’t help but to stare at the boy, who ducked his head sheepishly, offering a shy grin and an embarrased laugh. “You... don’t know Cathedra Veri?”

“No. It doesn’t ring any bells.” The boy tilted his head thoughtfully, his expression suddenly very serious. “Although, now that I think about it, I can’t really find many bells to ring.” Yozora again found nothing to say, staring blankly at Sora until the boy shrugged, grinned in embarrassment, as if to apologize. “What I meant to say is, I can’t really remember anything.” 

The words very neatly passed through Yozora’s mind and were instantly discarded. He simply couldn’t accept them. Couldn’t remember anything? Nothing at all? Well, it did explain many things. Like how he didn’t know who Yozora was or what Cathedra Veri was, how he couldn’t remember who “she” was, though there undoubtably was a “she” he knew. But if he didn’t know anything, then how could he possibly help Yozora find the person he’d been looking for? If he remembered nothing, he wouldn’t remember whether or not he knew this person, whether or not he _was_ this person. He couldn’t not remember. He simply couldn’t. 

Sora searched Yozora’s face, frowning more and more as he remained silent, battling against himself. “Um, are you okay?” 

Yozora considered the question carefully. “I suppose I should be asking you that.” He grabbed a nearby chair and pulled it to be closer to the bed. Sora watched him carefully, though he betrayed no mistrust, no suspicion, only a mild curiosity mixed with concern. “What’s the last thing you remember?” 

“Hmm,” Sora crossed his arms, nose scrunched. “Uhh, ummm….” 

“Come now, you have to remember something,” Yozora said lightly, though the joke only made Sora’s brows furrow.

“I think… I remember,” he shut his eyes, tilted his head back. Something serene crossed his face, peaceful, inviting. It wasn’t an expression Yozora saw on many people, not nowadays. With the darkness encroaching, no one dared be so open, so vulnerable. Yet this boy seemed so at ease, so unconcerned. Very slowly, he reached forward, his arm moving in a motion that felt natural, something he had done before. His expression remained serene, but his eyes were focused, as if he were calling something to him. However, when his fingers wrapped around empty air, shock and surprise shattered his image of peace. When his hand remained empty, he stared at his fingers, rubbing his thumb along his palm. 

“Hmph,” Sora made a frustrated noise. “I don’t actually. I just know that my name is Sora. That I… came from somewhere.” 

Well that was vague and cryptic. 

Yozora had to suppress a sigh. “Well,” he reasoned, “you have been sleeping for a week. Maybe you just need some time to wake up. Things will start coming back to you soon enough.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Sora glanced again around the room. “How did I get here, anyway?”

“I brought you here,” Yozora said. To Sora’s confused look, he explained, “We found you in the dark part of the city. You were encased in a crystal throne.”

“Really?” He sounded incredulous. “Weird. I definitely don’t remember anything about a crystal throne. And what do you mean the ‘dark part of the city?’ ”

This kid really didn’t remember anything. Still, maybe it would be good to explain things to him. Jog his memory a bit. 

Yozora settled deeper in his chair. “Nine months ago, a darkness started spreading over the city. If you spend too long in the shadow, you start getting consumed by sadness and rage. Eventually, you fade away and become a monster with no soul. The lights around the rest of the city keep the darkness and the monsters back, but nobody has been able to survive very long beyond that Boundary. You’re the first person in a long, long time we’ve pulled from it.” 

“A darkness that consumes people….” Sora mulled over this, but he said nothing else, so Yozora continued. 

“I command the militia forces keeping the monsters and the darkness out of the city. Myself and two of my closest subordinates heard rumors of a crystal in the dark that might have the power to save the city, so we went to investigate and found the crystal throne, and you.” Sora frowned deeply at the news. Yozora studied his face, but there was still no spark of recognition. “We brought you back to the light side of the city to where we are now, Cathedra Veri. It’s the seat of power for the entire city. Our king once ruled here from the top of the spire.” 

“Oh, cool, a king!” Sora’s smile spread wide, shining. “What’s he like?” 

Despite trying to keep his face neutral, Yozora couldn’t help the painful grimace that dug at his teeth. “Unfortunately, we don’t have a king right now.” Sora’s smile faded. “Our last king died when the darkness appeared. We’ve been waiting for a new king, a true king, to take their rightful place, but we haven’t been able to find him yet.” He paused, let the information sink into Sora, though still he saw nothing to indicate the boy knew anything more than what Yozora was telling him. “We had hoped the crystal might have some clues as to who this rightful king is, and when you appeared, we hoped you might know something.”

“Who, me?” Sora bit his lip, thoughtful once again. Yozora stayed very quiet, let him think. They were silent for a while, Sora unmoving, Yozora watching him. Finally, the boy raised his eyes. “I’m sorry, but I don’t remember anything. I wish I could help, but it’s all blank.” 

Maybe it had been too much to hope for. Maybe it had been foolish of him to hang all his hopes on one boy. Maybe he should have seen this all coming. This time, Yozora allowed the barest of sighs to whisper through his teeth. 

“It’s all right. It’s not your fault.” He paused when there came a knock at the glass, the medic waving at them through the window. Yozora stood as he entered. “The medics will do what they can to try to find out what happened to you and I will send some magicians to try to help you remember. If you can think of anything I might want to know, then please tell me.” 

Sora nodded. “All right, I will.” 

Yozora nodded along with him. “Good. And don’t be afraid. You’re safe here and you are welcome in Cathedra Veri’s halls.” 

That smile broke through once again, a beacon of light amongst the gloom that was crowding Yozora’s mind. “Thank you! Will I get to see you again?”

Yozora considered this strange boy with his warm smile and his friendly demeanor. “Perhaps,” he said simply. “For now, I’ll leave you to the medics. If you require anything at all, let them know and they will take care of you.” 

“All right. Goodbye! I hope you find what you’re looking for!” 

Yozora turned away, muttering a quiet, “Me too,” before slipping out the door. 

Magia was waiting on the other side. He and Yozora watched through the glass as the medic handed Sora a new set of hospital gowns and told him to get changed. They watched until the curtains were drawn for the boy’s privacy and there was nothing else to see. 

The mage sighed. “Well, that was less than helpful.”

A gnawing ache in Yozora’s chest copied the sentiment, but he refused to acknowledge it. “At least we saved him from that crystal. I don’t think he was there of his own volition.” 

“At this point, we may never know,” Magia turned away. “Aegis will want to know what happened. And you should get some rest. No doubt we’ll be back on the search tomorrow.”

Although Magia was right, Yozora lingered in front of the window. He stared into the drawn curtains, searching them for something, some sort of clue he might have missed. But there was nothing. Nothing that came to mind, nothing that reminded him of anything he might have overlooked. It was only a curtain and beyond that curtain was only a boy. The more time went on, the more Yozora knew he would have to face that. Still, a bit of disappointment and despair ached in his chest and he grit his teeth against the inevitable pain that followed.

His hope was dashing quickly away from him. Who knew if he would ever catch up to it. 

\- - -

Out front, a car was waiting, a man in a crisp uniform standing beside it. Upon spying Yozora, he grinned cheekily. 

“I suppose this means you had no luck.”

Yozora didn’t acknowledge the statement, sliding into the car when the door was opened for him. He let out a great sigh just before the driver’s seat was occupied by the uniformed man. He didn’t miss when the driver adjusted the mirror to see Yozora in it. 

“Something on your mind, Commander?” 

“Nothing,” Yozora mumbled. “Just dreams and wishes.” 

“Hmm.” The car rumbled to life and pulled smoothly away from the capitol’s entrance. “I’ve found that such things are much more than just _nothing._ A wish and a dream can be quite powerful things, don’t you think?”

“Only to children.” Yozora frowned out the window. “Aegis isn’t going to be happy.”

Rould chuckled. “I’ve rarely seen Captain Aegis anything but happy. Rest assured, you should be fine. We will be meeting him shortly.” 

“Or, we could turn around and go back to Cathedra Veri.”

“Very funny, Commander, but I’m more afraid of Captain Aegis than I am of you.” 

Yozora sighed but he knew it wasn’t worth the effort to change the butler’s mind. 

“Tell me, Commander,” once again, Yozora saw the butler’s clear blue eyes flash at him from the mirror, “what was the boy like?”

“What do you mean?” Yozora mumbled, only half paying attention. 

“I mean what was he like? Did he seem like a king to you?”

At this, Yozora bit back a laugh, turning it into more of a frustrated scoff. “Hardly. He’s just a kid.”

“I highly doubt that.”

Yozora considered the dark clouds out the window. “I suppose time will tell.” He had nothing else to say and was happy when Rould let the conversation lapse. 

Eventually, a militia compound appeared around a corner, a thing of concrete and steel and hardened edges. Long before Aegis had been Yozora’s personal guard, he’d trained militia members and served as their captain. He and his men had built this compound from the ground up not so long ago. As the darkness had deepened, it had become Aegis’ fortress, his sanctuary. Whenever the guard was anxious, Yozora knew more times than not, he could find Aegis here, either working with the militia or relentlessly training himself. 

Waiting just beyond the gate, the captain had his arms crossed over his chest, tapping his foot impatiently for when Yozora finally stepped out of the car. 

“I want to hear everything,” he demanded even before Yozora had even shut the door behind him.

“You’re in a rush,” he commented calmly as he waved Rould on and the car pulled away. “Something wrong?”

Aegis shook his head. “Magia said the boy woke up. So tell me what he said.”

Yozora glanced around the compound, waved a hand. “Not here. People may be listening. Let’s go inside.” 

Aegis grumbled, but led Yozora into the heart of the compound. Militia members stopped to salute them both, shocked whispers following them along the hallway. It wasn’t often Yozora visited militia compounds. He directed everything from Cathedra Veri, overseeing the city from its tallest point. The only other place he could be frequently seen was out on the streets searching for clues or at the ring of light surrounding the city, about to brave the darkness once again. He wasn’t one to mingle with the militia members, especially in recent months. Too many things to do. Too many leads to follow up on. Too many people counting on him. 

Aegis led them back to his study, where he locked the door as Yozora went to the closed balcony. The building was the tallest in the compound, though it was a dwarf compared to many other buildings in the city. Still, there was a nice view of the training ground below, Yozora taking the time to watch people mill about, speaking quietly to one another. Aegis joined him, gazing beyond the glass of the encasing windows to his men. A hard line formed along his lips, a grimace he didn’t quite let through. 

“What happened?” He asked.

“His name is Sora.” 

Yozora wasn’t sure why that was the first thing he thought to say, but once he’d spoken it, the words hung in the air between them, around them. With it, questions bubbled to the surface, though Aegis stayed silent, an indication that he wanted Yozora to continue. So he did. He told Aegis everything that had happened, going over in painful detail the fact that the boy knew absolutely nothing, that he was just as clueless as the rest of them. 

He realized he was biting on his words and paused, surveying the city rising above them. Night was falling. Nighttime was always perilous in the city. The ring of light had to be maintained. In the daytime, they could use the natural light of the sun to make their jobs easier. As the night fell, the darkness grew stronger, the monsters more prone to attack. 

This was what Yozora thought of as he told Aegis of Sora.

Once he was done, he let the air settle around them, the silence welcome. Some of the questions had been relieved yet some remained and even more had sprouted. Not one for letting such things go unsaid, Aegis turned to him. 

“So what do we do now?”

Yozora shrugged. “We wait, I suppose.” 

Aegis scoffed. “Fat chance of you just sitting back and waiting. What’s your plan?”

“I don’t have one,” Yozora waved a hand dismissively. “Magicians will see if they can help Sora remember anything important, but until he remembers something, then I can’t twiddle my thumbs thinking he will have the answers. We have to move on.”

“So what will you do?” 

It was an easy question with a difficult answer. Even though the answer itself wasn’t hard to come by, it was a bitter truth to accept. “We’ll go back to what we were doing. Looking for more clues. Tracking down any leads. Get back to our search for the true king.” 

Aegis wouldn’t look at Yozora, which told him whatever the guard was thinking of was not something he would approve of. Still, he didn’t press for answers, following Aegis’ gaze to the city and the people around them. 

The silence stretched, time slipping away from them. It wasn’t often Yozora got to simply pause and watch the world move around him. Too often, he was far too busy to watch the subtle beauty of the world beyond his city. Too often, he was so focused on the shadows and the light that he forgot what laid over them all. As they stood at that balcony, they watched the sun set, and they watched the neon lights of the city take up the sky, holding it above all the buildings and the streets so far below. 

This truly was such a beautiful, wonderful place. A place Yozora was all too happy to protect and serve. But these last few months had been extremely trying. He was desperate for a lead. For a clue. For anything that could help him save this place. 

He simply couldn’t wait any longer. If and when the boy remembered something, then he would act. Until then, he had to move on. 

“Yozora,” Aegis broke the silence with his name, another indication for him to be worried. The guard still wouldn’t look at him. “Have you considered that there isn’t a king to find?” 

A flare of light went up over the city. A spotlight that danced along the clouds. Yozora didn’t know what it was from or where it was going, but he watched the light, saw as it cut so easily through the dark of night. 

“We must hope what we are doing is the right thing,” Yozora said finally. This time, it was Aegis who sought his eyes and he refused to meet him. “It’s all we can do anymore. It’s all we have for hope to save the city.” 

Aegis didn’t need to tell Yozora that he was skeptical. That he was losing faith. He knew. He knew all too well.

They stood in uneasy silence as the city came to life at the dusk of the day. Tomorrow, they had a lot of work to get back to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise things are going to start happening soon. Have to set the stage before the play really starts to get going =P


	5. A Warning Call

Over the next few days, it became clear that although Sora still couldn’t remember anything, he wasn’t just a normal boy. A sense of power lingered around him, though nobody could tell exactly what this power might be. Perhaps it was the crystal or perhaps it was something else. The air rung with it though, an unconscious feeling of relief that Yozora had mistaken as warmth when first meeting the boy. He didn’t seem to have any control over it, didn’t even seem to be aware that he possessed it. But it was unmistakably there, a presence that curled around those near him, easing their worries and allowing them just a moment to relax. None of the magicians could explain it nor could they explain why he could remember nothing of his past. They worked tirelessly to try to help him, but all their efforts seemed to be in vain. Whatever secrets Sora was holding remained locked away, so far out of their reach they didn’t even know where to look.

Sora, for his part, took everything in stride. He quickly made friends with all the magicians and medics and Yozora noticed that even Aegis had grown a soft spot for the boy. Every time Yozora came to check on Sora, he was rewarded with a beaming smile and too many questions for him to possibly answer. Of all the questions the boy had for him, there was only one impossible question that gave Yozora pause every time it was asked.

“So when do you think I’ll be able to get out of here?” 

The first time this question was presented to him, Yozora blinked. “You want to leave?”

Sora considered him, nodded. “Yeah. I don’t think I’m meant to just stay here. I want to go out and see the city, go on adventures. I think... I think I used to do that.” 

“What adventures are you talking about?” Yozora asked, though he wasn’t surprised when Sora shook his head sadly.

“I don’t remember. It’s just a feeling I have.”

Feelings were all Sora ever had. Never memories. The memories seemed to have fled, but the emotions attached to them lingered, driving him toward a goal even he didn’t fully understand. Every now and then, he would say things that gave vague impressions of a boy who had been surrounded by people who cared for him, people who he had cared about. But his small hints would give clues to a hard life, to a life spent fighting, though what he could have possibly been fighting, Yozora couldn’t comprehend. It was never enough for the magicians to unlock his memories, but it was enough for Yozora to wonder.

While the magicians worked with Sora, Yozora returned to his duties of scouring the streets for information. However, all he found were lingering rumors of the crystal, the whispers having died away considerably. Knowledge moved quickly in the city, but it always stayed fresh in people’s minds. With so little else to take their minds off the current times, the deepening shadows, people had turned to gossip and rumors. Rumors stuck around, grew to have lives of their own. And yet, word of the crystal was fading quickly from the collective conscience. Now that they had retrieved Sora and the crystal was gone, it was as if people had simply forgotten it. It was convenient timing, especially considering nobody on the streets could have known what had happened, that the crystal had melted away. 

The convenience of it all struck Yozora a bit cold. Things moved in the city. People talked. Even the concrete seemed to whisper. But those whispers had a source. Be it a strange story or a rather eclectic individual who garnered wider attention, there was always a source. So there had to be a source to these rumors, and more so the fading of them. Yozora had the impression of someone moving behind the scenes, an unknown hand that had them all lined up neatly as if on a chessboard. Whoever this person could be eluded him, but the more time went on, the more time he spent searching for clues in the city, the more he was convinced of their existence. 

As frustrating as it was to continue on as if nothing had happened, Yozora didn’t have much of a choice anymore. If something came of Sora’s memories, then they would change course. But other than hoping and waiting for the boy to remember something, they had no other clues to go on. They still didn’t know anything about the crystal formation Sora had been surrounded by nor did anyone they spoke with say anything different than what the original rumors had suggested. 

It was all a perfect dead end. Orchestrated seamlessly by someone or something in the shadows. 

The thought ground at Yozora’s nerves, an itch just beyond his reach. Who could possibly be spreading rumors such as these? Not the Revolutionaries. Not the monsters. It had to be someone else. But what other force was stalking the city that would do something like this and for what purpose? 

While Yozora wasn’t a man to simply wait patiently, he also wasn’t a man to rush to action with aimless intent. There were a lot of people who were counting on him, so he had to act with rationale when he made a decision. And so, he searched for answers to Sora, the crystal, and their lost king, but he also worked tirelessly to continue keeping the darkness at bay. With the crystal gone, he had expected some sort of reaction to take place, either a weakening or a strengthening of the shadow. However, as the days went on, it became clear that absolutely nothing had changed. Everything still held their tenuous balance, city forces just able to hold the darkness back, yet it always seeking a way past their defenses, waiting for its chance to strike.

For now, all he could do was continue on, even if it felt like all he was achieving was running an endless maze for someone else’s amusement.

\- - -

Two weeks after Sora woke in the medical ward of Cathedra Veri, three weeks after their mad dash from the darkness, the day came when the magicians gave their final report. For now, they had done everything they possibly could do. They suggested no further testing, only observation for any signs of recovery. It wasn’t the news Yozora wanted but it was the news he had begrudgingly come to expect. As such, once the reports were done, he visited Sora’s room with one of his most trusted captains.

To better accommodate Sora, he’d been granted a room deep within Cathedra Veri where the medics and magicians could keep an eye on him. However, it was always supposed to be temporary. Either they would get their answers on Sora’s true nature or they would release him to whatever life was waiting for him. 

It was with this news that Yozora knocked at his door. Sora, knowing who it was without having to look, answered his door eagerly, welcoming him in. 

“Sora, I’d like you to meet one of my best men, Captain Taro.” Yozora gestured between the two. “Captain, allow me to introduce Sora.”

The captain saluted Sora, who smiled and copied the motion back to him with enough cheer to not be insulting. “It’s good to meet you, captain.”

“Likewise.” Taro was a patient man and a good warrior. Yozora trusted him with his life, as well as Sora’s. But mostly, he trusted Taro to keep the young man in line. 

“Taro is going to be looking out for you for the next little while, until you get settled,” Yozora said. 

Sora tilted his head, as he often did when he was confused. “Settled?”

Yozora nodded. “The magicians have finally said you can go. You’re welcome to roam the city, find a place of your own, work, friends, whatever you’re looking for.”

“Oh,” to Yozora’s surprise, Sora’s expression fell, his eyes dropping to the floor. “Does that mean I won’t see you and the others again?”

Without meaning to, Yozora glanced at Taro, caught a concerned look from the captain. “You’ll always be welcome in Cathedra Veri, Sora,” he said sincerely, earning him a grateful smile from the boy. “But you keep talking about wanting to go on adventures. It’ll make me feel a little better if you have those adventures with someone to watch your back, at least until you’ve got your feet under you.”

“Nothing too extreme, though,” Taro said firmly. “The Commander has requested nothing near the Boundary, nothing where monsters are known to appear. However that does leave most of the city free to explore, if that is your wish.” 

“I think you’ll find all the adventure you could want,” Yozora said. “This city is full of surprises even I haven’t seen yet. You’ll have to report back to me on what you find.” 

Sora grinned, held out his hand. “Promise!” 

Yozora took his hand, felt the twitch of a smile on his lips. “And if you remember anything….”

“You’re the first person I’ll tell!”

“Good,” Yozora glanced over Sora’s shoulder to the perpetual disaster his room had become. “Captain Taro will help you pack your things. You’re welcome to stay for dinner tonight or you may leave immediately. The gates are open for you. Just… make sure you clean up before you go, all right?”

Sora jumped, turning sheepishly over his shoulder while the captain let out a dramatic sigh. Yozora went to step away, but Sora snapped back toward him, giving a mock salute. 

“Wish me luck, commander! I’ll be sure to come back to see you soon.” 

“I look forward to it,” Yozora turned, waited until he received a nod from Taro, and left them to it. No doubt Sora would find his own way quite easily in the city. It could be a hard place to live, but Yozora was confident that he’d be okay. Even if Sora remembered very little of his past, he was more than capable of looking after himself. Even if he could be a bit of a dunce sometimes. 

As he walked away from the room though, Yozora felt his heart jump into his throat, his feet urged to turn back and demand Sora stay where he was safe. The fact of the matter was, Sora wasn’t an ordinary boy. There was something about him. Something that would undoubtably attract attention. Something that had already attracted attention. Rumors of the crystal may have slipped away, but they had been prevalent for a long while and someone had fed those rumors to the masses. Whoever this mastermind was, Yozora didn’t doubt they knew of Sora, that they may come for Sora in time. 

Knowing this, Taro’s true purpose in staying with Sora was as a safeguard against whoever this person may be. Taro was capable of defeating monsters and keeping Sora from straying to dangerous parts of the city, yes. But he also had an uncanny ability to feel the intent of a person’s heart. Yozora didn’t know where it came from, but he trusted it enough to give him the task of protecting Sora. If this mastermind did come for him, then Taro would be able to sense it and react properly. He’d also promised to keep in close contact with Yozora, Magia, and Aegis. If something happened, they would be alerted to it. At this point, it was all they could do for the boy. 

As he walked away from Sora’s room, both Magia’s and Aegis’ voices rung in his head. They’d been having arguments over the boy for days now. Magia had wanted Yozora to keep Sora in Cathedra Veri, still convinced the boy could be a danger or in danger, while Aegis had argued it was better to let him go, to allow him to live his life. He was just a boy after all, not quite yet a man, not quite a child either. Whatever he may seem to be, it didn’t change that fact. The thought of keeping Sora locked away in Cathedra Veri’s halls hadn’t sat right with Yozora, so he had convinced Magia that the best course of action was to let Sora go and keep an eye on him, to be prepared should something happen. Nobody wanted to see something bad happen to him, but keeping him caged up left an equally bad taste in everyone’s mouth. This was the best compromise they could think to do. Give Sora some freedom while ensuring his safety as much they could. Taro would do his best to protect Sora and Aegis promised to keep the militia members on alert for him, to make sure he was doing well. It was all they could do. 

Sora joined Yozora for dinner one last time that night before heading out with Taro straight after desert. His brightness and eagerness stayed Yozora’s hand from insisting he stay one more night, allowing the boy to slip away with Taro at his side. Once he was gone, an ache formed deep within him. Perhaps it was regret or loss or the sting of realizing all his hopes and dreams in the boy had been unfounded. In any case, it was hard to come to terms with the fact that he had been wrong, that Sora had led him to no further clues on who he was searching for. As glad as he was to have met the boy, he still felt hollow and empty now that he was gone, now that his hope had been shattered. Hope that Sora was something more than just a boy. Hope that he held the answers Yozora had been searching for for so long. Hope that finally, maybe it was all coming to an end. Sora’s leaving signaled that their last thread of hope was now gone. With it snapped, Yozora was left with nothing but all the things he feared for his city. If they didn’t find the king, the darkness would overtake them. It wouldn’t matter if Sora knew something or didn’t, because eventually he, too, would be consumed by it, along with everyone else. 

The thought tasted like bile in Yozora’s mouth. He turned away from it, focused on what was in front of him. A city in need. People crying out for his help. In this, he could focus his time and energy. In this, he could continue on, ignoring the hurt that bled from his heart.

\- - -

In the days that followed, sightings of Sora and Taro came across Yozora’s desk. He paid attention to them only enough to reassure himself that the boy was doing well and that Taro hadn’t allowed him to wander into any potential danger. So far, the captain was doing his job well, as Yozora knew he would. And so, he placed those worries aside, striding ahead. 

During the next few days, he, Magia, and Aegis ventured once more into the shadow, to that deep, dark place where they had found the crystal. Unfortunately, they found the museum crumbled to dust and rubble, now a place crawling with monsters and no sign of what had once lay underneath it. They tried to trace the underground tunnels through the streets, but it quickly became clear that the tunnels had not followed the normal flow of the city and they lost the trail not long after starting along it. The mystery of the crystal was done. There was nothing left for them to seek. Instead, Yozora turned his attention to the figure behind the crystal, this mastermind had orchestrated recent events. 

To their credit, both Magia and Aegis agreed that they thought something was strange about the rumors of the crystal, though they remained skeptical of an overriding figure leading them along. As frustrating as it may be to face their cynicism, it was healthy for Yozora to have to confront their opposition, to answer their questions. The situation didn’t line up perfectly with the thought of someone lurking in the background, having led them to this point. For one, the purpose of this mysterious figure remained shadowed. If their purpose had been related to Sora or the crystal, then surely they would have sought him out, if to do nothing but speak with him. So far though, Taro reported no hostile interactions with anyone nor did anyone seem to recognize Sora, nobody seeking him out. So what other purpose could this mysterious figure have? It seemed strange for someone to go through the trouble of starting rumors to not act on whatever plans they clearly must have. Still, as many questions lingered, Yozora couldn’t shake the feeling that they were being laughed at, that someone was tugging them along in whatever plan they had. 

\- - -

In the following days, Sora and Taro visited Cathedra Veri a couple of times, returning once to retrieved something Sora had forgotten and another time to have dinner with Yozora. It warmed Yozora to see the boy, and to see him doing well. He spoke of his adventures in the city, of exploring every corner the captain allowed him, of meeting new people and trying new things. His enthusiasm for the city sparked such a joy in Yozora. Yes, this city was wonderous and wonderful. Yes, it was worth protecting. If only to know more people had the opportunity to see the city in such a grand light as Sora had. 

During their dinner, Sora paused partway through, his bright expression dulled to something thoughtful. “Is there more to this world than just the city?” He asked.

Yozora tried to hide the pain that blossomed in his chest. He buried it in his cup, drinking deeply before answering. “Once, yes. Then the shadow came. We don’t know how far it expands outward, though none of the expedition teams we’ve sent out have found its end. For now, the city is cut off from whatever else may have survived the darkness.”

Sora frowned deeply at the news, pushed food around his plate. “Your world is a small one,” he said, his voice taking on a wistful tone Yozora hadn’t heard before. His expression was far off, to some place his mind didn’t remember but his heart certainly did. “I know that feeling. Of being stuck on an island with nowhere to go.” His expression tightened, a frown touching his lips. “I… know that feeling very well.”

Yozora studied him quietly, looking for clues the boy may subconsciously give, but there was nothing immediate that he saw. “It is the reality of the situation. Once the darkness is vanquished, then our world will grow much larger. There will be plenty more adventures for you to go on at that time. Until then, you should be patient. Get to know the city inside and out. Tell me everything you see and everything you learn.”

Sora blinked at Yozora, then smiled brightly, immediately launching into tales he’d collected over the short period of time he’d been outside Cathedra Veri’s walls. From what he spoke of, Yozora could tell Taro had his hands full with this one. He offered Sora and Taro beds in Cathedra Veri, which they accepted, Taro with a grateful, exhausted sigh. 

Knowing Sora was safely within Cathedra Veri’s walls that night, Yozora slept soundly and peacefully, and he didn’t worry about the dark of night that crowded the city’s ever-shrinking borders. 

\- - -

Despite how long Yozora had fought against the worry, despite how much he had battled to keep his darkest thoughts from crowding his mind, he found himself confronted with them only the next day and he should have known better. Sora and Taro left Cathedra Veri in the late morning after joining Yozora for breakfast. Once they were gone, Yozora turned to his duties for the day. Not every waking moment of his life was spent searching for the king. Running a city and a militia force required a lot of paperwork, after all. 

He was confined to his study, mulling over words, sentences, phrases, until the letters became meaningless jumbles of lines. It was a peaceful day. The sun was soft. The city was quiet. Everything was far too perfect.

Yozora should have known it just too quiet. 

He should have expected for Magia to come rushing into his room, already armed with his rapiers, that this was inevitable, that he should have been prepared for this day for a long while now. 

Still, he was shocked when the mage said, “Trouble! Captain Taro’s called for backup in the fifth ward!” 

His shock rolled out from his chest, a panic he had not felt in a long while. It was enough that he moved, his limbs jumping for action, his mind sharpening. 

Sora was in danger. 

Before he could comprehend all that needed to be done, Yozora was rushing through the hallways with Magia at his side. 

“Aegis?” 

“Waiting for us outside. I’m tracking their signal, but they’re on the move. We have to hurry.” 

It took them far too long to get out of the capitol’s halls, to reach the car that was waiting for them outside, Aegis in the driver’s seat. Yozora and Magia leaped into their respective seats, the car speeding off before their doors shut. 

“What do we know?” Yozora demanded. 

“Nothing,” Aegis answered, weaving the car deftly through the small bit of traffic on the road. “Taro sent out a distress signal a couple minutes ago. Claimed he’d been injured. That’s all we know.”

“Sora?” 

“No word.” 

Yozora bit down on an oath, leaned toward the window, searching for something that wasn’t going to be there. The fifth ward was not very close and if Taro and Sora were moving as Magia said, then there was even more reason to hurry. Whatever was happening, the two would have to hold out until they could reach them. Perhaps it was too much to ask. Too much to expect. As much as Yozora didn’t want to, he felt himself preparing for the worst, his mind unwillingly coming to the conclusion that they would arrive too late, that the scene laid before them would be of carnage. 

His grip tightened on his sword, his heart refusing to accept such an outcome. They would make it. They would make. They _had_ to make it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time to set the worldbuilding aside and get to the action =P
> 
> Look forward to next week!


	6. A Warrior's Heart

Not nearly soon enough, Magia let out a shout and Aegis slammed on the breaks in front of an old apartment building. It was clearly abandoned and so decrepit Yozora could have sworn someone had picked it up from the dark side of the city and set it on this random street block. 

“Signal leads here!” He yelled, diving out of the car. Yozora and Aegis followed, both reaching to unsheathe their weapons. The door had been forced open already, so the three barreled inside. As breathless and anxious as they were, they paused in the foyer, searching for clues as to where to go. A faint shout along the halls steered their path. Yozora took the lead before either Aegis or Magia could stop him. 

_Where is Sora?_ His mind refused to entertain the possibility of being too late, of walking into a room of unmoving bodies. They had to find Sora. They had to find Taro. They simply had no other choice. 

The farther into the complex they ran, the more shouts echoed to them, along with the sounds of fighting. Taro must be holding them off for now, but if what Magia had said was correct and he was already hurt, they had to hurry. 

Knowing this, Yozora reached through the veil, allowed his body to slip through the tear, searching for Taro’s lifeforce, finding it, and pulling himself to it, entering back into the world in the middle of a fray. 

A glance to gather information. Standing before him were people dressed in ragged clothes, but every single one of them bore a snatch of red prominently displayed, a wrap of cloth that signaled where their loyalties lay. Taro laid nearly unconscious on the floor before Yozora. And Sora stood over him, his body sunken into a stance as natural as his smile, a scowl on his lips, his teeth set, and his eyes focused. In his hands, he wielded a stick with the confidence of someone who had done this before, of someone who had stood unflinching before powerful and dangerous enemies. Within the boy, Yozora saw the spark of a warrior’s heart, the need and the ability to protect those around him, the drive to defeat all that stood in his way. 

When Yozora manifested in the room, appearing in a small gap between Sora and the men in red, there came a brief pause to the fight, a breath held as the situation changed, as the tide of battle unexpectedly swayed. Sora’s scowl flipped into a grateful smile and the people facing them paused in shock and dismay. A glance told Yozora all he needed to know about them, to know what they were.

Revolutionaries. 

His first concern was to account for everyone in the room. There was himself, Taro, and Sora on one side. Across from them stood half a dozen Revolutionaries, none of them looking like they were about to back down. Several other Revolutionaries were scattered on the ground. 

One glance at Taro told Yozora that he’d been out of commission for a while. The defeated Revolutionaries had been at Sora’s hand. He had held their ground well, it seemed. But now, he could step back. Yozora could handle this. And with his arrival, the Revolutionaries’ attention was now fully on him. When Yozora attacked, they surged forward, a burning need in them to destroy him as much as he felt the desire to stop their attack. 

Before either could act, Sora rushed past Yozora, entering the fray with a powerful swing of the stick. 

“Sora, stay back!” Yozora shouted, reaching for his sword, but Sora dug his heels into the ground and parried an attack. 

“I’ve got this!” He said, offering a confident smile over his shoulder. 

Yozora bit back an oath, stepping closer to Taro, aiming his crossbow carefully. Taro was out for the count and Magia and Aegis would be there soon. He just had to keep Sora from being too reckless and the Revolutionaries from further harming Taro while he was vulnerable. He reached for magic, finding it came easily to him, summoning a reticle that appeared before him. His crossbow hummed with power. When a Revolutionary swung at Sora’s side, a laser cut him down before he had the chance to strike.

In such a confined space, Yozora was limited on what he could do, but what he could do would be enough. 

While Yozora held his ground, using his crossbow to take care of the Revolutionaries, Sora flew around the battle, holding his own against anyone who stood in his path. Yozora supported him when he needed it, but he found the boy to be sufficient on his own, even if all he had to fight was a stick. For as skilled as he seemed, Yozora never let any of the Revolutionaries close enough for them to hurt him nor for him to show exactly what he was capable of. 

By the time Magia and Aegis burst into the room, a final laser cut through the last Revolutionary, sending them sprawling to the ground. Yozora paused for a moment, taking in the sight of a breathless Sora and his two closest companions surveying the scene, double checked that the Revolutionaries were all down, and dismissed the reticle. 

Magia and Aegis went first to Sora, taking the stick from him and asking if he was hurt while Yozora turned to Taro. The captain had several wounds to his back and shoulder. Clearly, the Revolutionaries had attacked him when his back was turned. It had been a cowardly ambush. 

Yozora pressed a hand to Taro’s chest. “Don’t worry, my friend, we’ll get you some help. Just hold on for me.” 

Taro opened his eyes as much as he could, squinting at Yozora. “Commander,” he breathed out, twitched, grimaced. “Sora?”

“He’s all right,” Yozora glanced over his shoulder, confirming that Sora was indeed all right. His scowl had softened into a hard look of determination. He kept looking over at Taro and Yozora, though Magia was questioning him, distracting him. “You did well. We’ll take it from here.” 

Taro nodded, wincing in pain when he did. Someone approached, though Yozora knew who it would be and kept his posture relaxed. Sora knelt next to Taro, a shocked look crossing his face as he saw his injuries. 

“He’ll be all right,” Yozora said. He glanced over his shoulder, confirmed with only a nod that Magia and Aegis had summoned help. “For now, you need to get out of here.”

“I’m not leaving him!” Sora snapped, his look of determination ringing, teeth set and lips pulled back in a bit of a snarl. But Yozora didn’t miss the slight tremble in his arms, the tension lingering in his body. 

Slowly, he put a hand to Sora’s shoulder, playfully shook him. “Everything’s all right now. Let us handle this.” 

While Sora still looked unconvinced, he bit his lip, sat back on his heels, and nodded. “All right,” he muttered softly. 

Yozora nodded as well, looked to Aegis. “Captain, take Sora to the car. Magia, check to see if there are other Revolutionaries in the area. I want them handled.” 

“Sir,” was the automatic response, Magia hurrying to survey the area while Aegis carefully came forward, putting a hand on Sora’s arm and pulling him gently to his feet. The boy followed Aegis, but his gaze remained on Taro until he was whisked out of sight.

Once they were gone, Yozora turned his attention to Taro, a bit of guilt filling him. He’d done this. He’d set Taro to watch Sora knowing very well someone could indeed be after the boy. But he’d never expected this. What were Revolutionaries doing here? Why had they attacked Taro and Sora? Perhaps the easy answer was that Taro was a militia captain alone and vulnerable with just an ordinary boy for backup. He might have been an easy target. But that didn’t feel exactly right. There was something else going on. Something more. 

Yozora waited impatiently for help to arrive, for militia members to arrive and arrest the Revolutionaries and for medics to collect Taro and take him to the nearest medical ward with promises that he would be okay. Only then did he check in with Magia, though the mage reported that there were no other signs of Revolutionaries in the area. Once he was reassured the area was secure, he turned his attention to Aegis and Sora. 

The guard was standing by the car, Sora seated inside, staring glumly into his hands. Yozora nodded to Aegis, opened the door and leaned in to speak with him, but the boy didn’t even seem to notice. 

“Sora,” he said, the boy startled at the sound of his voice, “are you sure you’re all right?”

Sora nodded immediately. “Just tell me, is Captain Taro going to be okay?”

“Yes. The medics took him to get treatment. He’ll be okay.” He offered a vial to Sora. “Here. The medics recommended you take this.”

Sora accepted it, but he turned it over in his hands, examined it with a pinched expression. “What is it?”

“Refortification stimulants,” Yozora said, though from the blank look Sora gave him he could tell the boy didn’t know what that was. “It’ll replenish your strength.” He pulled a vial from his own pocket and downed it in one gulp, hoping the boy would follow his lead. 

Instead, Sora tilted his head to the side. “That one’s a different color.”

Yozora nodded. “It’s to help with magic exhaustion.”

“Magic?” 

Again, Yozora nodded, pocketing the empty vial. “Another time. We should get you out of here. Back to Cathedra Veri.” 

“Oh. Okay.” Once again, Sora stared glumly into his hands. Yozora had to prompt him one more time to take the medicine, which the boy did, grimacing at the taste. 

“Just sit back. We’ll be on our way soon,” Yozora didn’t miss when Magia appeared from the building, searching until his eyes fell on his commander. “Stay in here for a moment.” He shut the door before Sora could respond. 

Magia pulled him aside, something curled in his hands. Yozora didn’t have to ask for it, simply waited until they were far enough away before the mage handed it to him. It was a circular disk that fit in the palm of his hand, a cool metal that had no clear buttons but that Yozora recognized immediately. Many of the Revolutionaries carried these small disks. This was not the first time Yozora had held one nor would it be the last. 

The disks held the personal information of the Revolutionary, their history, their name, their family members. It was a final knife to the chest for anyone who did them any harm. Proof that they were more than just a statistic, more than just another Revolutionary. The Revolutionaries knew they weren’t as strong as the militia. Many of their rank had been killed at the hands of the militia, more than the number of militia who had been wounded or died due to the Revolutionaries. This disk held the last threads of their humanity, their proof that as citizens of the city, that they deserved more. It was always painful to hold one, to know someone’s son or daughter had been killed due to their own corrupted ideals and beliefs. But something was different about this disk. When Yozora held it, it didn’t hum with information as most disks did. Instead, it felt dead, a weight with little to it. 

When he glanced at Magia, the mage’s expression was grim, a little shake of his head all Yozora received when he raised a questioning eyebrow. Yozora swiped his hand over it, turning it on. A light caught around the edges of the device, a spark of electricity racing along Yozora’s fingertips. From that spark, a voice called forth. 

_“Go out into the city. Find the militia captain guarding a boy. Collect the crystal. That is your only task.”_

\- - -

Upon returning to Cathedra Veri, the medics insisted on doing a full evaluation of Sora and Yozora. Yozora was too busy convincing Sora to submit to their exam to fight when they demanded he do the same. The entire time, Sora only asked after Taro.

“We haven’t heard anything from the medical ward yet,” was always the answer, but it never satisfied the boy. 

Once the medics were done with their evaluations, Yozora brought Sora to his study to wait for further news. While Yozora consulted with several militia members and magicians organizing clean up of the battle and readjusting patrols around the city, he remained aware of Sora’s anxious shifting, of the boy unable to sit still. Eventually, Sora stood and began pacing, though he always kept an ear to what Yozora and the others were speaking. 

Magia and Aegis checked in on them, but Yozora sent them back out into the city almost immediately. Whoever had given orders to collect the crystal had to be found and stopped. It was the first real piece of information they had about whoever may have started the rumors about the crystal, about Sora. After hiding in shadows for so long, they were finally making their first move. As much as Yozora wanted to join his companions, he didn’t want to leave Sora alone, even in Cathedra Veri. He may be the only person capable of protecting the boy should the Revolutionaries or anyone else try to attack him again. He would be there, no matter what.

As the steady flow of visitors began to dissipate, Yozora took to his desk, activating the holographic screens. At the sight of them, Sora leaned forward, curious, until Yozora gestured him around to see them. Three screens lined up in front of them, one showing street cameras and surveillance in and around Cathedra Veri that Yozora could browse through, another showed active threats registered by militia members, and the last Yozora flipped open to the medical files the ward treating Taro had sent over. The look on Sora’s face told Yozora the boy had no idea on anything he was looking at, so he pointed to the medical files.

“It looks like Captain Taro has been evaluated by medics. He’s going to be hurt for a little while but should make a full recovery.” 

Sora let out a heavy sigh, visibly relaxing. “That’s good. Those guys came out of nowhere and attacked him.” 

Yozora dismissed the screens, turning to face Sora. “What happened to you two?” He hadn’t had the chance to ask yet, too busy caught up in the recovery to get the full story. 

Sora frowned deeply, his fists clenched at his side. “We were just walking in the city. Nothing was happening.” He shook his head. “I wasn’t paying enough attention. I only noticed something was wrong with Captain Taro yelled. Those guys were attacking him. He… he got hurt.” 

Yozora waited, but Sora didn’t elaborate. “What about you? Did they hurt you?”

Sora shook his head, lifting his arm. “One of them grabbed me, but I shook them off and went to help the captain. He told me to run into that building, but I couldn’t just leave him. I helped him for as long as I could, but when we tried to get away, those guys followed us. I had to do something to help Captain Taro, so I grabbed that stick and held them off until you showed up.” 

His story matched up with what they had learned from the Revolutionary’s disk. Their aim had been to get rid of Taro and take Sora, and they had nearly succeeded. They were lucky that Sora had been able to hold his own as well as he had. 

Speaking of, that raised another question that was bothering Yozora now that he had time to think properly. “You fought very well. I didn’t know you were a warrior.”

Sora smirked at him, but he soon turned a thoughtful look toward the window. “You know, I feel like I remember fighting a lot. But I don’t think I was a warrior like you, Magia, or Aegis.” 

“Oh?” 

“No. I was… something else.” 

It wasn’t much to go on. As far as Yozora knew, there were only so many types of warriors. You were either a soldier or you were a magician. Some people, like Yozora, found a balance between the two, but there wasn’t any other kind of warrior. Sora had fought as if he were a soldier, but his movements had suggested a fighting style unlike anything Yozora had seen from any of the militia members or even any of the formerly trained soldiers like Aegis. He wondered if perhaps he’d been trained by Revolutionaries, but even their fighting style wasn’t anything like what he had seen from the boy. It was something utterly unique, something Yozora didn’t recognize from years and year of formal training and what he witnessed on the city streets. 

“It would be good for you to train, to regain some of your skills,” Yozora said, though Sora looked skeptical. “It might help you remember something. Plus, it’ll be good if you can defend yourself.”

At this, Sora nodded. “It’ll be good if I can help protect Captain Taro, so he doesn’t have to worry so much.”

Yozora couldn’t help but smile at the boy’s words. “Yes. If that will make you feel better.” He turned and activated the screens again, scanning the known threats for any updates, but nothing had changed in the few minutes it had been since he’d last checked.

“Who were those guys anyway? What did they want?” 

It sometimes astounded Yozora just how little the boy knew. It would have been so much easier if he had known, if Yozora didn’t have to explain. To just shrug it off as Revolutionaries being Revolutionaries. Having to sit and explain what that meant was an entirely different situation, a conversation Yozora wasn’t exactly sure how to broach. It wouldn’t be fair to just shrug off his question. He’d never refused to answer one before. If he did now, it would just raise Sora’s suspicions.

He bit at the inside of his cheek, wondering where to start. “They call themselves Revolutionaries. They’re a band of people who think the city is better off without a king and are working to disband the systems in place, like the militia and Cathedra Veri. At first, they were a peaceful protest group. When the shadow started to take over the city, they became more and more violent.” He paused, knowing there was more he could say. How the Revolutionaries yearned to see him dead on the steps of Cathedra Veri, how they would stop at nothing to kill him, how he had killed a number of their ranks in the past years. For some, he could claim self-defense, but that was not always the case. In times such as these, sacrifices for the greater peace had to be made. The Revolutionaries were an easy target. A scapegoat in more than just name. Yozora knew that, and he knew all the things spat in his face in response to such nonsense were much more valid than any excuse he could give. 

Luckily, Sora seemed consumed with the words he had already spoken, turning them over carefully in his mind, wondering over them. He thought for several moments, lifted his chin to look at Yozora. “Isn’t the darkness a bigger threat than anything else right now? Shouldn’t you all be trying to get along to stop it?”

Yozora shook his head. “It’s not that simple. The Revolutionaries believe in part that our old king is the one who brought about the darkness. They blame him for what’s become of the city and believe that another king would only make everything worse. They’ll stop at nothing to keep us from finding someone worthy to take the throne.” 

Sora considered his words, head tilted thoughtfully, arms crossed. He seemed to come to some conclusion, nodded his head in assurance. “All right. So they attacked Captain Taro because he’s part of the militia?”

“Not exactly, though I’m sure that was part of it,” Yozora said. He paused again, wondering if it was a good idea to tell him what they had found. It was hard to find a reason to keep such important information from him, so Yozora reached into his pocket and drew out the disk Magia had given him. “This is a disk,” he explained to Sora’s confused expression, “typically, it holds the personal information of the Revolutionary who possesses. This one was a little different. It had orders to the Revolutionaries who attacked you two.” 

Yozora ran his thumb over the device, letting it hum to life. The voice rang out once more, _“Go out into the city. Find the militia captain guarding a boy. Collect the crystal. That is your only task.”_

With that said, the disk deactivated and Yozora pocketed it once again, searching Sora’s face for his reaction. The boy seemed curious more than frightened. Perhaps he didn’t realize exactly what it meant. 

“We believe that the actual target of the Revolutionaries wasn’t Captain Taro, but rather you, Sora.” 

At Yozora’s words, Sora startled. “Huh?! Me?” 

“Yes, you,” Yozora pointed to Sora’s chest. “We found you trapped in a crystal, remember? The crystal melted into your body. We believe that’s the crystal the disk is referring to. The crystal they want to collect is you.”

Yozora let his hand fall, Sora’s hand pressed to the spot where he had been pointing. The words were sinking in, the boy looking more than a little lost, but still not scared. He was quiet for a few moments, several heartbeats of indecision, before his fingers grasped at his shirt and a fierce look of determination flared to life across his face. 

“I’m not just going to sit back and let that happen,” he said. “And I’m not going to let them hurt anyone else trying to get at me. I don’t know anything about a crystal, but if they’re after me, then I’m not going to let them just do whatever they want.” He raised his gaze to Yozora, a fire burning in his eyes. “I want to fight! Let me help you stop them!” 

“No way,” Yozora held up a hand. “It’s too dangerous.” 

“C’mon! I already told you! I was a warrior! I can defend myself!” 

“It’s not going to happen,” Yozora put his hand on his hip. “Until we figure out what’s going on and who sent the Revolutionaries to get you, you’ll be staying with me, Magia, and Aegis here in Cathedra Veri. I know you wanted to go exploring, but it’s too dangerous now. Unless we can figure out why they’re after you, then you have to stay where we can keep you safe.” 

Sora puffed out his cheeks and glared at Yozora as if that was somehow going to change his mind. Yozora turned away from him. “I know it’s frustrating. I know you want to help in any way you can. But please trust us. If you do something rash and the Revolutionaries get you, just think how that would make us feel. We’d be the failures who couldn’t protect you.”

“That’s not true! I—”

“Plus, we have no idea what the Revolutionaries know about you and the crystal. You might hold a very dangerous power, one we don’t want them to have. If they get you, who knows what they are planning to do.” Yozora paused when Sora fell silent, the boy’s head drooping. 

The boy’s frustration was one Yozora understood all too well. How many times had he stood in such a similar position, wanting nothing more than to help, to fight, but being forced to remain back because of the perceived danger? For him, this had only truly come about when he took on the role of regent. For Sora, it was becoming his day to day life. He knew how hard that could be and he hated seeing how much it was affecting him.

Without really thinking, acting more on impulse than anything else, Yozora reached forward and ruffled Sora’s hair. The boy glanced up at him, a curious light in his eyes, but Yozora just smiled at him. “Sacrificing yourself for the sake of others isn’t always as noble as people think. Sometimes, you play right into the enemy’s hands. Sometimes, your sacrifice can be in vain. Then what? What does it matter if you fight and protect someone else if more harm comes of it? What does it matter if you manage to stop the villains in this moment only for them to win in another because of what you did?” He dropped his hand, Sora passing his fingers through his hair. “Please don’t be so reckless, Sora. Think a little before you jump in. And trust us to keep you safe.” 

“It’s not that I don’t trust you. I just… don’t want to see others get hurt because of me.”

Yozora stared down at the boy, who looked not defeated, but so utterly confused and uncertain. He didn’t know what to do in this situation. He didn’t know where to turn to. And Yozora completely understood why. 

Still, he couldn’t just let Sora do what he wanted just because he was worried about others getting hurt. The Revolutionaries were a pain, but Yozora and everyone else had dealt with them for a long time now. They weren’t an enemy he feared. Only an annoyance, a bug he’d yet to crush. He’d spent most of his time searching for the king, letting the Revolutionaries run wild in his absence. That was going to change. With their threat against Sora realized, he was no longer going to let them run wild in the streets. They still didn’t know exactly why the Revolutionaries were after the crystal and Sora, and Yozora would be damned if he let those traitors use the boy for their own purposes. As he always had before, he would stand in the gap between those in danger and those causing trouble. After all, it was his role, his place in the world. 

“Sora,” Yozora waited until the boy looked up at him, “I know you’re worried about everyone. Let us worry about you in return.”

Sora bit his lip, clearly uncomfortable with the request. But he didn’t have much of a choice and perhaps he understood that. He nodded, then put his hands on his hips. “On one condition!” 

_Of course._ Yozora let out a sigh and gestured for him to continue. 

“Train me.” The request came simply and easily, but Yozora still blinked in surprise at it. Sora flashed one of his wide grins, all shining teeth and radiant warmth. “I was once a warrior who could fight and protect the people I cared about. I want to be that again. I’ll stand back and let you fight this battle for me this time, but in the future, I want to be able to participate. So train me! Teach me everything you know and help me become the best I can be!” 

There came a beat of silence between them, Sora with his radiant smile, Yozora with only a confused hitch in his eyebrow. The words sunk in slowly, his request coming together neatly in Yozora’s head. He was asking Yozora to help him, to teach him. How many years had it been since Yozora had trained with anyone except for Magia and Aegis? And he’d never had the privilege of teaching another. As commander, he was rarely in a position to offer such services. But, just this once, he found himself the exact right person to help. 

For the first time in a long time, something stirred in Yozora’s heart. Something warm and bright. Something that lit corners of his soul that had been fading away into darkness. For the first time in a long time, Yozora smiled, and it came easily to his lips, touched his eyes, let the tension seep from every pore of his body. 

For the first time in a long time, Yozora was happy. 

“All right, Sora,” he said with an easy laugh, “I’ll train you. But you have to promise me you’ll work hard. I won’t go easy on you.”

“Good! I promise!” Sora held out his hand. Yozora shook his head, but he took the boy’s hand, held it tightly. A promise between them. An oath to keep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Officially halfway through part one! Ohh, how exciting! 
> 
> I thoroughly enjoyed writing a scene where someone tells Sora off for being so quick to self-sacrifice. Needs to be said, let's be real.


	7. A Wayward Memory

There was an alarm system programmed in Yozora’s room. It was set up to alert him to any movement during the night outside of the normal patrols, a safety measure in place against monsters who might break in or Revolutionaries who might try to sneak in. In all the time that Yozora had lived in the capitol, not once had it ever alerted him to anything out of the ordinary. It only seemed fi that after such an eventful and exhausting day, Yozora was torn from sleep by an urgent beeping. 

His first thought was of Sora, his second of the throne room. A flick of his wrist activated his gauntlet, brought up the interface, showing him the hallway where the movement had been detected. The camera was trained on a lone figure stumbling along, half hidden in the low light. It took Yozora a moment to realize what he was looking at, another before he dismissed the interface, turned off the alarm, and pushed himself out of bed. He signaled the militia patrols also alerted by the system to stand down and he went to investigate himself. 

The night skies over the city had always been beautiful. Full of twinkling lights and a yellowed moon that hung like a huge jewel. When the shadow had begun creeping over the city, the beauty of the night was lost in the eyes of most, overtaken by the fear and uncertainty that the darkness had become. Now, the night held nothing but a promise of monsters. It was hard to remember that once upon a time, Yozora had gazed up at the sky in admiration and wonder. Nowadays, he looked up and he saw nothing but ruin. 

The low light afforded to him by the moon on this particular night was welcome, as he quickly made his way down the hallways. The figure had slipped away from where he had first spied it on the cameras, but he followed the only logical place it would have gone. 

Up. 

The grand spire of Cathedra Veri was an impressive thing. It towered over the city, though some buildings clawed up to its heights. From its very top, Yozora could look out and pick out the most prevalent structures and intersections of the city. In the night, it was even easier to do so, to spy things marked in neon signs and shimmering lights. He couldn’t remember the last time he had simply taken the time to mark out the familiar sights of his city, to be at peace in its beauty. 

He didn’t expect to have to climb the entire spire, but as he came to its top, he found the maintenance door to the roof open. His heart leaped at the sight and he charged through it, reaching for the veil, ready to leap through should it become necessary. Instead, he was faced with the city rolled out below him and a boy sitting on the roof’s edge over it all. 

Sora didn’t seem unsettled by the height. His focus was far and away, off to a long distance, something so far away that Yozora didn’t think he could even comprehend its depth. So far that he didn’t notice Yozora standing there, not until Yozora strode forward and took a seat next to him. Sora acknowledged him with a smile, but said nothing, returning to his stargazing. Yozora didn’t push him, giving him the silence and the space he needed. In the breaths between them, the night sky remained unchanging, yet Yozora swore something was shifting in the world around him. Something intangible, something that rung to a place deep in his being. His chest ached, but he didn’t know why. 

“You know,” Yozora spoke softly, “I used to come up to the roof of my childhood home and look up at the stars like this. It wasn’t quite as spectacular as the view from up here, but it was special.” 

Sora kicked his legs out, swinging them over empty air and the bustling streets below. “Sounds lonely, being on a roof all by yourself.”

“Yeah,” Yozora narrowed his eyes. “Except… I don’t think it was.”

Sora gave him a puzzled look, but Yozora couldn’t explain it any further. His memories of his own childish stargazing were faint, but he was aware that this was something he had done before. He had sat on a roof, looking up at the sky, wondering over the stars and the moon. And… perhaps there had been something else. Someone else. But… he couldn’t quite remember. Sora’s presence at his side was familiar in a way that comforted him, warmed him at his core, but it wasn’t quite the same. Something was missing. Sora merely stood in the void left by whoever else had once been at his side. 

His own musings were interrupted when Sora shifted forward, leaning his elbows on his knees. “How did you know I was up here?”

“You set off an alarm. I thought we were under attack.” 

At this, Sora ducked his head in embarrassment. “Oh. Sorry!” 

Yozora shrugged. “It’s no problem. You don’t usually get up in the middle of the night, so I thought I’d come see what was on your mind.” 

He waited, but Sora was quiet. Instead, he put his hands behind his head, flopped onto his back in dramatic fashion, stared straight up into the sky. Looking over, Yozora saw a thoughtful look struggling over the boy’s face. He wanted to push him a little, but he didn’t know what that would help, so he tilted his chin upward, imagined he could feel the moonlight washing over him, imagined those nights when he had been a child and things had been simpler. A night under the stars had just been a night under the stars. An innocent time. Naïve. And maybe it was better for that. 

“I… I think I remembered something.”

All the ease that had seeped into Yozora’s limbs snapped at the news. “You remembered? What did you remember?” 

“It wasn’t much,” Sora wouldn’t look at him, eyes drifting away from where Yozora sat. “And I don’t really even know if it was a memory. But… I had a dream about someone.” 

A dream. It wasn’t much to go on, but it was more than they had gotten in all this time. Despite the jittering feeling just under his skin, Yozora forced himself to relax, to lean back and look up at the stars once more. But his focus remained solely on Sora, on what he was going to say next. 

“Tell me about them,” he said. 

Sora didn’t answer immediately and Yozora didn’t push him. He waited, as patiently as he could, as Sora collected himself, took a breath. 

“It was… a boy. With silver hair and these really pretty eyes. They were like jewels.” He shifted next to Yozora. “I don’t know. When I saw him, I just….” 

When Sora’s voice trailed off, Yozora frowned, snuck a peek out of the corner of his eye, startled at the sight. Sora’s eyes were watery. The boy didn’t acknowledge his tears, didn’t even seem to notice them. Instead, he simply stared off again, to that far-off place so beyond anything Yozora could understand. 

“It hurt. A lot. To see him. I tried to reach for him, but he was too far away. I think he called my name and I tried to call his, but I can’t remember….” Once again, Sora reached out. It was that same motion Yozora had seen in the medical ward, the reach of his fingers, the curl of them as if to grasp at something. Their emptiness unsettled something in Sora, let the first tear slip free, and only then did he realize their presence. He sat up, quickly wiped them away. “Anyway,” his voice wavered and he cleared his throat, “like I said, it wasn’t much.”

No, it wasn’t much. But it was something. Something was so much more than anything they’d gotten up until this point. Whoever this boy was, he was obviously someone Sora had feelings for. Someone who was very important to him. This hurt he was feeling, Yozora didn’t have to feel it, didn’t have to know who this boy was, to know that Sora was missing him terribly. It also confirmed to him that yes, Sora had had a life before appearing in that crystal. That out there somewhere, someone was missing him just as much as he was missing them. 

His fingers curled into fists. The city, for as much as the darkness had taken from it, was still vast. It was entirely possible that this boy had faded when the shadow had descended. Or he could be searching for Sora on streets they’d yet to visit. Him and that girl Sora had referenced that first day when he’d woken. Sora had had a life before all of this. A life he was now yearning to return to. All this was complicated by the crystal’s lingering presence and the fact that the traitors were looking for it. 

Whatever obstacles they may face, Yozora wasn’t going to let them stand in his way. These fleeting memories, these lingering emotions, he would make sure Sora found his way back to them, back to wherever he belonged. No matter how long it took. 

“Sora,” Yozora said, catching the boy’s attention with the serious tone of his voice. “Remember your dream. Memorize that boy’s face. In the morning, I’ll ask militia members to go look for him.” 

Sora blinked at him. “Really? You think he’s out there somewhere?”

“I have no doubt. We just have to look for him. After all, I know he’s looking for you.” 

Yozora looked over to the boy, saw the thoughtful look on his face. Slowly, his hand pressed over his chest, his expression melting into something contented, something happy. He leaned backward, his eyes sparking when they searched the stars. 

“Right. Thanks, Yozora.”

Yozora nodded. “Whatever it takes.” He paused, let Sora sink into thoughts of finding his past, then said, “You should get to bed. You’re going to need as much rest as you can get to start our training tomorrow.”

“We’re going to start so soon?” Sora seemed genuinely surprised, which only made Yozora chuckle. 

“Of course. You want to get stronger, don’t you? You don’t get stronger by waiting around.”

Sora blinked, then jumped as if startled. “You’re right! And maybe I’ll have another dream, remember something else.” 

“You’ll tell me if you do, right? Instead of climbing up the entire spire in the dead of the night?” 

Sora tilted his head in an apologetic smile. “I didn’t mean to. I just kind of ended up here.”

Yozora shook his head, gestured for Sora to follow him as he stepped back toward the safety of the interior spire. “I already told you, you’re welcome in Cathedra Veri. But maybe next time, save your exploration for the daylight hours?” 

Sora laughed behind him, all light and warmth once again. “Right! I will!” 

The sound of Sora back to his normal self contented Yozora, settled the anxious parts of him that had been rattled at finding him on that edge. News of a boy as well as a girl who knew Sora, who were probably looking for him, lit a fire in Yozora. If they found whoever these mysterious figures might be, then they’d be able to learn more about Sora, more about his past, where he came from, why he ended up where he’d been found. There were still answers to seek and whoever these friends of his might be could have them. Plus, seeing Sora cry at the mere memory of the figures of his past made Yozora determined to reunite them. Whatever had happened to him had separated him from people who he cared about, and who no doubt cared about him. The longer they were apart, the more hurt would build within the boy, desperately seeking out what he had lost. 

Yozora had to right that wrong. 

\- - -

A desperate knocking at his door jolted Yozora awake once more. He sat up, reaching for his weapons as the sound intensified, but he let out a pained sigh when a voice called out to him, “Yozoraaaa! You said we were going to train! C’mon, wake up already!”

He laid back with a sigh. “Sora, it’s too early.” 

“Oh, come _on!_ Please! I want to start now!” 

_“No.”_

Through the silence and the closed door, Yozora could practically hear Sora pouting. 

There were only a couple more seconds of silence between them before Yozora groaned. “I’ll be up in a few moments.”

Just as loud as the pouting had been, Yozora could very clearly hear the silent celebration happening just outside his bedroom. Once he’d heard Sora’s footsteps hurrying away, Yozora checked the time, realized just how early it was. Sora was never up at this hour. But Yozora had a sinking feeling he knew why, grimly thought it must have been a long, sleepless night for the boy. 

\- - -

The first order of business, before anything else, was breakfast. Sora joined Yozora with the same cheer that he’d always had, but Yozora didn’t miss the dark circles under his eyes and the muffled yawns he tried to conceal behind his hands. This dream of his must have really shaken him. Maybe it would be good to go hard into training, to give him something else to focus on. 

Before they could even think about training though, there was one other thing they needed to do. 

Yozora brought in a sketch artist to sit and speak with Sora about the boy, recreating the image from his dream until it was to Sora’s liking. The artist then passed the sketch to Yozora, who took several moments to stare blankly at the face drawn before him. Aegis peered over Yozora’s shoulder, his face curiously unreadable. Magia was much freer with his thoughts, his face betraying nothing but skepticism. Even then, it was Aegis who spoke first. 

“You sure this dream of his wasn’t about you?”

Yozora bit back a retort, but he had to admit, the sketch in his hands was eerie. It had resulted in a face so similar to Yozora’s that both the artist and Yozora had questioned Sora about it. He’d insisted the boy was not Yozora, that his eyes had sparkled blue-green, that he’d had a softer face, that he was a very different person. Still, the result was unnerving. 

To alleviate some of the confusion, the artist had colored in the sketch, marking the boy’s eyes distinct from Yozora’s one red, one blue. While Yozora stayed to train Sora, Magia and Aegis were to go out with militia members and magicians to look for this mysterious boy or anyone else who might know him. But they were already running into the problem of people potentially recognizing him as Yozora not as someone else entirely. 

“We’ll just have to make do,” Yozora said, handing over the sketch. “Magia, give a copy to the magicians who worked with Sora’s memories. Maybe they can understand this more than we can.”

“Yes, sir,” and with that said, he and Aegis went to start their search. 

As they did, Yozora had a sinking feeling that this was going to be all in vain. The sketch was too similar to Yozora and everyone knew who he was. It was going to be one hell of a day trying to convince people that this boy was someone else. Yozora was still having trouble convincing himself of it. Then again, Sora’s tears hadn’t been for him. They had been for someone else, someone he was missing terribly, someone who had known him well before he had come to Cathedra Veri. Whoever this person was, maybe he looked like Yozora and maybe he didn’t, but he certainly existed. They just had to hope that this was going to work, that they’d somehow track him down. 

After breakfast and the session with the artist, Sora was overly, and eagerly, ready to get to training. Yozora had sent him ahead to get familiar with the training room while he paused to speak with Aegis and Magia before they went out to look for this mysterious boy. Once they were on their way, he followed the path through Cathedra Veri to its back wing, where the ceiling was all colored glass and the sun shone in a rainbow down on the floor below. There, a training ground had been set up specifically for Yozora to train. The wide, open space and reinforced walls and glass allowing him to use even his most potent magics with little worry of destroying the structure around him. 

With Sora, things were going to be a little different. Yozora wasn’t certain exactly how skilled he was and with what, but what little he’d seen told him that Sora fought very differently from anyone else he knew. Whatever style he had learned, wherever he had learned it, wasn’t going to be something Yozora would be able to easily build upon. That meant if he was going to train Sora, it was going to be from the ground up. But first, they had to figure out his weapon of choice. Once Yozora knew what he’d once wielded, he’d be able to get a better sense of what his abilities should be. Beyond that, he wasn’t sure if Sora was able to use magic, though he doubted it, and if he did, that was going to be an entirely different issue. For the first day, he would be happy to get Sora settled back into his weapon of choice. Once they’d identified that, he could build upon the basic skills necessary to wield such a weapon, even if he’d have a unique style of fighting. 

When Yozora entered the training room, he found Sora staring up at the ceiling, transfixed by something in the swirling patterns. Yozora came to stand beside him, following his gaze. The ceiling had been molded by some of the greatest artists in the city long before the shadow, long before Yozora’s birth, in times of long-lost kings. The mural represented an age passed by, an age looked back upon in fondness and wonder. It wasn’t something Yozora had taken much of an interest in before, but now he looked at it, the colorful history of their past blended in carefully selected pieces of glass, woven into a ceiling that had stood over them for many, many years. In a sense, the mural had become their sky. Beautiful, intricate, long since taken for granted. It was peaceful, gazing up at it, noticing how colors swirled into one another, searching for patterns and images in them. But there was no singular image Yozora could see. Only a vortex of color, a rainbow bled dry. He wondered if Sora saw something different, but he didn’t ask, turning away first and taking a step toward the rack of practice weapons laid out at the edge of the room. Only after Yozora called him did Sora join him. 

He took a moment to scan the weapons, a curious light widening his eyes, a little wrinkle in his nose. Yozora stood back, simply watched and wondered what exactly he was going to gravitate toward. 

“Anything jump out at you?” He asked.

Instead of answering, Sora kept glancing between the rows and rows of weapons. To be fair, he had a lot of options to consider. From spears and halberds to rapiers, broadswords, maces, axes, bows, crossbows, pistols, rifles, javelins, staffs. Anything Yozora could think of as a valid weapon had been laid out for Sora to choose from. Some were obviously there only for the sake of presenting all options. Not for one second did Yozora think Sora would be comfortable with a rifle on his shoulder. But this at least gave him options. They could whittle down the field when he started moving toward whatever weapons he was most comfortable with. 

But for as long as they stood there, Sora roaming the myriad of weapons before him, hand trailing over several, he never went to pick anything up. His fingers dug at the sword, the mace, the staff, even at the crossbow, though he only leaned in once to grimace at it before moving on. It seemed strange to think he would be most comfortable around a sword, mace, and staff. Each of those weapons varied in style, handling, and attack patterns. A warrior Sora may be, Yozora didn’t think for a second he was a master at arms. 

After several silent minutes of perusing the selection, Sora stepped back, taking them all in again. Yozora was about to suggest they start eliminating options, but was silenced when a tranquil look overcame Sora’s face. The boy reached forward. Wrist snapped outward. Fingers curled inward. A look of peaceful expectation across Sora’s face. And yet, his hand remained empty and he once again seemed surprised by this result. 

“What are you doing?” Yozora asked, though he knew very well what the answer would be.

“Uh,” Sora jolted as if he’d just realized what he was doing, moving his hand to scratch the back of his head. “I don’t know? It’s kind of... soothing, I guess.” 

“You look like you’re reaching for something.” 

“Yeah. I guess I am.” Sora’s fingers flexed, reached again, but didn’t quite make the full arc Yozora had seen time and time again. Something discontented and worry bit into his expression when he pulled his hand back in. It was similar to the expression he had worn on the spire’s roof the previous night. He was missing something. Even if his memories were gone, the emotions lingered, and now they were starting to boil inside of him. 

It took a physical effort for Sora to push the emotions aside. Yozora saw it in the way his hands clenched, forced to his side, his smile no longer reaching his eyes. “Sorry to say, I don’t know if any of these weapons feel right. I mean this one’s interesting.”

He moved to one of the last weapons Yozora had thought of, one that Aegis had suggested as a joke. It seemed to be even more of a joke as Sora took it off the rack, holding it above his head, testing it out. 

“It’s way too big and why would the blade point up this much?” 

“Uh, Sora, you’re holding it wrong,” Yozora said. Sora gave him a confused look until he stepped to the boy’s side and took the scythe in his hands, flipping it so the blade extended away from him. This change had Sora immediately putting it back on the rack as if it had personally affronted him. 

He let out a frustrated noise. “None of this feels right. I know I was a warrior! I know it! But....” He bit his lip, gazed around the weapons before him. 

For the first time, Yozora realized he may have made a mistake in offering so many options to Sora. The boy seemed completely overwhelmed by everything. And clearly he wasn’t a master at arms after all, his handling of the scythe proof enough for that. 

“Well,” Yozora said with a patient sigh, “let’s pull out the ones you feel most connected to. Maybe after a few swings you’ll figure it out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are coming up on a couple of my favorite chapters for this part. Should be fun.


	8. A False Regent

After a couple more hours and more than a few practice swings, the closest thing they could find to something Sora was comfortable with was the mace, though he seemed quite proficient with the broadsword as well. Neither fit perfectly, but it was entirely possible that Sora had either crafted his own weapon or that he’d been using a weapon passed down to him from someone else, a weapon unlike any the militia would use. 

That was fine. Either way, Sora had enough of a basic understanding of both weapons for Yozora to build upon. During the first couple of days, he guided the boy through simple movements, seeing where his own body naturally fell when wielding a weapon. A week later, Sora settled on the sword, though he preferred a single-edged blade that was heavier than most other weapons. During their initial training sessions, Yozora focused on filling any gaps the boy was missing and on learning more of what his normal fighting style would entail. Sora didn’t naturally fall into any stance or movements that Yozora recognized, but there was a rough poetry to how he fought. Even if he didn’t understand the entire system Sora had used, he picked up enough on the basics to push Sora into a more structured position, helped guide his movements to more how he would fight. Sora took to his teachings well, though he bemoaned their using wooden and plastic weapons during their training. Yozora simply told him he didn’t trust Sora with a real weapon yet, smirking when the boy pouted. 

In secret, he put in a request for a very special weapon to be crafted. 

\- - -

Several days later, Yozora met Sora in the training room carrying two packages in his hands. The boy bounded over to him, peering curiously down at the long bundle under Yozora’s arm, though he paused when a smaller box was thrust under his nose. 

“What’s this?” Sora took the box, turning it over. 

“It’s for you,” Yozora said simply. He had to suppress a wince when Sora vigorously shook it. “How about you try opening it, instead?” 

Sora carefully peeled the box open, his eyes widening at what lay just inside. He carefully pulled out a slim black gauntlet similar in style to the bracers the boy had been wearing when Yozora had found him. It had threads of red and gold running its length and a large silver circle at his hand, small golden lines extending toward each finger. 

Sora turned it over, examining it in close detail. “This is for me?” He asked.

Yozora nodded. “Well, aren’t you going to try it on?” 

Sora grinned, a bit mischievous, a lot excited, and turned his wrist over. It took a bit of finagling and a bit of help from Yozora, but finally, they got the gauntlet fit snugly to Sora’s arm, the boy turning his hand over and over, happily inspecting every detail.

“Let me show you how it works,” Yozora took Sora’s arm and leveled it in front of him. “Here’s the sensor to summon the interface.” He pointed out the small black indent in the leather, helped Sora to awkwardly wave over it. The interface immediately popped up in front of the boy, who stepped back as if in surprise, but was grinning from ear to tear. 

“Whoa!” After the initial shock, he leaned forward, eyes darting around the information streaming along the sides of the interface. 

“In time, you’ll learn how to use it to your liking. For now, it only has basic functions and communication tools you can use to get in touch with myself, Aegis, and Magia.”

Sora tilted his head slightly. “What about Captain Taro?”

A smile twitched at Yozora’s lips. He activated his own gauntlet, typed out a command. “Yes, Captain Taro as well,” he said as Taro’s information flashed across Sora’s interface. 

“Cool.” Although it was clear the boy had no idea what was going on, he had a bright grin on his face. It may take him some time, but he would learn just how powerful of a tool had been pressed to his fingertips. Yozora was sure he’d regret this later, knowing Sora would soon become a menace with it, but he leaned in and pointed out the basic functions on the interface.

“Oh, and it does one more thing.” Yozora offered the long parcel next. Sora lowered his hand, the interface dismissed as he took interest in what Yozora held. “Here. I had this crafted for you.” 

He held out the package, dropping it into Sora’s hands. Sora turned it this way and that, eventually began unwrapping it. It revealed a compact sword, resting and inactive. The metal gleamed black but the gears were silver and gold, the blade slim but the mechanisms purposefully built with heavier metals. Sora turned the sword over and over, marveling at the craftsmanship. Eventually, Yozora had to point out the trigger at the base of the hilt, which when hit caused the sword to whirr to life, extending to an eighteen-inch length with a gleaming white energy blade. Sora held the sword, both in one hand and two, swung it around experimentally, peered closely at it. 

“It’s a little short, don’t you think?” He said eventually, to which Yozora sighed and Sora grinned and laughed. “It’s great! I love it!” 

“I’m sure you do,” Yozora was still shaking his head. “For now, it has very basic functions. Once we learn more about your fighting style, we can incorporate more versatile mechanisms into it. But that will come later. And, it does have one unique function just for you.”

Sora gave him a curious look, to which Yozora said nothing, simply held his hand out for the sword. He also produced a simple red sheath that lined his belt, showing Sora how to deactivate the blade and fit the sword properly along the sheath. Sora fiddled with it for several moments, but when everything was in its proper place, Yozora stepped back. 

“You know that reaching motion you do?” He mimicked it by extending his hand outward. Sora looked at him skeptically but nodded. “Try it out now, a little faster. Do it like you mean it.”

Sora wrinkled his brow, but stood a bit taller. He reached forward, as if to grasp at something just out of his reach. His gauntlet hummed expectantly and his sword leaped from its sheath, appearing in his hand just as his fingers clasped together, the blade extended and ready for use. 

At first, the boy seemed shocked, but that shock was quickly chased away by something else, something that had Yozora pausing. There was joy and surprise there, but also hurt, pain. Maybe grief. The boy still turned to Yozora and smiled, but there was something sorrowful in seeing the sword come at his call. Maybe it was too close to what he had lost. Or maybe it was too far away. 

Yozora hoped Sora could one day look past it. That he could accept the weapon and all that his present had become. As haunted by the past he may be, this was his reality. All Yozora could do was help guide him, to point out the way forward. Once Sora found that path, he would be okay. For now, this was just a little step toward that path. If Sora allowed it, the sword would one day become an extension of himself. When the boy reached forward, his hands would clasp around that sword and he would smile and be at peace. He would find whatever place this city had for him, whether it be fighting at their side or simply bringing his warmth and joy to whoever he met. 

That was what Yozora aimed for, but for now, this was enough.

\- - -

As the days went on, it quickly became clear that the search for the mysterious boy was leading only to dead ends. People in the city didn’t recognize the sketch. The few who did described Yozora when told to elaborate on who they recognized from the sketch. Sora didn’t have any additional dreams nor did he remember anything else about his past. The boy remained an enigmatic figure. Aegis was still convinced he was simply a warped vision of Yozora. As the days went on, it was harder and harder to argue against him. Still, they searched and they searched, hoping to stumble upon whoever this boy actually was. 

The trail for whoever had sent the Revolutionaries after Taro and Sora went cold almost immediately. Revolutionaries brought in for questioning knew nothing about the crystal, spitting vehemently that they would have nothing to do with the darkness swallowing the city nor anything that had come from it. So why had those few of their ranks come looking for Sora and the crystal? 

Captain Taro recovered, ready to return to duty. With Sora almost always at Yozora’s side, Yozora instead sent Taro to investigate what he could about the Revolutionaries and the crystal. On occasion, he did come to Cathedra Veri to spar with Sora when Yozora was too busy, but otherwise he stayed out in the city, scouring for clues they may have missed. 

It was clear to Yozora that although Sora was happy to be at his side, always displaying his typical cheer, he yearned for something more. The horizon was always where his eye fell, his hand reached out, his body moving forward. Yozora was always there to stop him, to snap him from the trance. Although Sora never seemed overly upset by this, Yozora recognized a heart yearning for more when he saw one. Unfortunately, circumstances as they were, there was nothing more Yozora could give him. For now, this was all he could offer. Until Yozora was certain his wellbeing was no longer in danger, the safety of Cathedra Veri was where he belonged, where he would stay. 

And still, they were no closer to finding this mysterious puppet master in the background, this figure who was guiding them along. Be the skepticism as it was, Yozora knew someone was behind all the mysterious happenings. Someone knew who Sora was. Someone knew what the crystal was. That someone was content for now to wait in the shadows, to send rogue Revolutionaries after them, but that wouldn’t last forever. Someday, they would make their move. Yozora had to be ready for that day. 

Among all this, the search for the king continued. It continued in walks on the street and rumors whispered along the city. And still, they found nothing of interest for this quest either. Their routine was simple and set. And how Yozora hated just how unmoving everything was becoming. 

\- - -

With everything going on and his focus on things much more important, Yozora was rudely reminded by a stern Magia that the annual ball was coming up and that his attendance was not only expected, but required. As regent, he had to show his face to the people, to let them know things were going to continue as they always had, even in difficult times. 

And so, his focus was reluctantly shifted from finding the true king and training Sora to preparing for this ball. 

Thankfully, Sora’s enthusiasm was enough to cover for both of them.

“A ball!” His eyes practically sparkled at the news.

“Yes,” Yozora couldn’t help the sigh that accompanied the confirmation. “It’s an annual event. The king used to host a festival across the city for an entire week, starting with a ball here at Cathedra Veri.”

“That sounds like so much fun!” Sora’s smile was infectious even when talking about this ridiculous ball. “Is there something I can do to help? Can I go to the ball too?!”

“Yes and yes, you can help and you’ll be required to go,” Yozora said dully. “If I have to suffer through it, then you’ll have to suffer with me.”

At this, Sora put his hands behind his head, his casual way of relaxing. “Oh, I don’t think I’m going to be doing much suffering. I’m really excited to get to see everyone! Will Aegis and Magia be there? What about Captain Taro?”

“Everyone will be there, including many people you haven’t met yet.” That thought hadn’t occurred to Yozora. Some of the other powerful people in the city, those that ran the corporations and businesses holding the economy of the city together even through all of the monster attacks and encroaching darkness, would be in attendance. Word of Yozora’s guest had no doubt reached them by now. They would all be frothing at the mouth to get to meet Sora, to see just what all the fuss was about. Perhaps to see if he was the king Yozora had been looking for. He would have to prepare Sora to face them. “Anyway, I can’t see how you’re looking forward to it. It’ll be just a lot of people and a lot of noise and a lot of wasted time.”

“I don’t think so. I like meeting new people and getting to hear their stories. Maybe it’ll help me remember something.”

That thought hadn’t occurred to Yozora either. Were they keeping him from remembering his past by sheltering him away in Cathedra Veri and limiting who he could interact with? 

The questions had Yozora’s stomach twisting, gritting his teeth against the grimace that threatened to rise across his face. 

“So what can I do to help?” The boy pressed. 

Yozora smirked. “You can help by doing your best to prepare yourself.” Sora gave him a confused look, so Yozora began counting off on his fingers. “You need to be fitted for proper attire and study the names, families, and businesses of the most important guests. You will also need to be well versed in city history, politics, and the current economic structure. Oh, and you need to continue your weapons training. And that’s just to start.” 

For as much as Sora had been excited for the ball, all of it drained away as Yozora kept talking, leaving him a confused slump of a boy. “All of that? Why?” 

“You’re a guest of mine. As someone close to the regent, you’ll be expected to know all of this.”

At this, Sora blinked, the light flooding back into his eyes. “Regent?”

Yozora froze, bit back an oath when he realized he’d never explained to Sora who he was. He cleared his throat, trying to find the words to say, stumbling over the ones that came most immediately to him, “Yes, well, I, um.” He cleared his throat again. “Since our last king’s death and since I was his right hand, I’ve been serving as regent for the city, waiting for our new king to arrive.”

The light in Sora’s eyes burst into an awe-struck smile across his face. “Wow! You’re almost like a king yourself!”

“No, I’m not,” Yozora said sharply. “I’m not the king nor will I ever be the king. I’m just a regent. Someone waiting for the true king to take his place. When that happens, I’ll go back to being just the commander.” 

“Hmmm,” Sora rocked back on his heels, all sly smiles and cheeky grins. “Yeah, but since there’s not a king right now, then you kind of are the king.”

As much as Yozora did not want to have this conversation right now, he knew if he didn’t impress this upon Sora in this moment, he’d be dealing with it for weeks and weeks. 

He faced the boy, waited until Sora’s smile slipped into something hesitantly curious, his hands falling to his sides. Yozora tried not to clench his fists, told himself to soften his voice, but to remain firm. This was something Sora had to understand.

“Sora,” he said, the boy tilting his head at his name, “please hear me. I am not the king here. I’m the commander of the militia forces. Without a king, we needed someone to take up the role of regent, and I was the natural choice. But all I am is a figurehead. I hold no more power than I did as commander. There is no king to this city. But one day, there will be.” He lifted his head, gazed out to the city below them. Sora followed his gaze, though Yozora doubted they saw the same things. Sora may or may not have grown up in this city as Yozora did, but he certainly didn’t know the city as Yozora did. This place was more than just a home. It was his heart, his soul, his reason for everything he did. And it was slowly being ripped apart. 

“One day, our king will arrive,” Yozora said low, his voice dropped, his words not for Sora anymore. “He will come and save us all. He’ll drive the darkness back. He’ll destroy the monsters. He’ll take his rightful place. And I’ll be there, at his side, ready to fight for him and this city. Until then, I’ll stand in the gap left behind and I’ll wait. I’ll wait to step aside, to step back into my rightful place. Until the time comes, I’ll wait.” 

Though his words were meant for nobody but perhaps himself, they rung in the silence that followed, echoed onward, filling the room with his own determination. There was no room for anything else. This was simply the answer, to wait, to search, and to hope. The true king would come and save them. That was all there was to know.

As they stood there, Sora carefully glanced to Yozora, though Yozora didn’t meet his gaze. “You said when you found me you were hoping I’d have answers to find your lost king.” 

To this, Yozora nodded. “I had hoped.”

Sora’s head hung. “Then, when I didn’t remember anything, that must have been really hard for you. I’m sor—”

A hand ruffled Sora’s hair before he could finish. Yozora gazed down at this boy, this boy he’d plucked from the air, brought home with such high hopes, saved from Revolutionaries, watched grow stronger and brighter. This boy who had become something of a comfort to Yozora. A warmth that left his bones aching when he was missing. When he drew his hand away, Sora looked up at him, a confused tilt to his head. 

“You may not have had the answers I was looking for, but you’ve done more for me than you could possibly know,” Yozora nodded. “Thank you, Sora, for being here for me.”

At this, Sora blinked, and he smiled that smile that bathed the room in light and cheer. The one that made it almost impossible for Yozora to resist a grin of his own. “What are friends for?” 

Yozora laughed, surprised by the rumble in his chest. He turned back to the city, found it looked just as beautiful as it always had. “Right.” 

\- - -

Sora was decidedly not a fast study. He retained as much information as he could, but perhaps it was too much for Yozora to ask of him to know everything. He’d have to keep a close eye on the boy during the ball and hope his boisterous personality distracted everyone from realizing something wasn’t quite right with him. Those within Cathedra Veri were to tell nobody of his true origins, knowing it would do no good and invite harm to come upon him. If the others caught wind that Sora may be powerful, that Yozora was potentially hiding something dangerous from them, there would be conflict. Conflict among the elites was the last thing Yozora needed. While most of the city was still relatively peaceful between itself, they had a chance of fighting back the monsters and the darkness. As soon as greed, fear, and rage started to creep into the citizens, that’s when they would start to lose. The presence of the Revolutionaries was proof enough of that.

Still, for as much as Sora was made to sit through boring lectures and tested again and again on historical events and who ran what company and how many children they had, he remained upbeat about the ball itself. He was excited to meet new people and to get to have some fun, though what fun he was expecting Yozora wasn’t exactly sure. 

In turn, Yozora prepared for as normal of a festival experience as possible. This would be their first without a reigning king. He intended to host a festival as smooth as it had been every other year, when they’d had a king on the throne, when the city hadn’t been falling to the shadow, when things had been so boringly normal, and he worked tirelessly to that end. In what seemed no time at all, the day of the ball had come upon him.

Just as Yozora had ordered tailored dresswear for Sora made for the ball, he too found himself stood in front of a mirror with a tailor clucking around like a mad peacock, preparing him for the ball. As commander, his attire had certain expectations. It emulated the militia uniforms, crisp, sharp, with broad shoulders, pin-straight pants, polished black boots, and a black jacket. It was also built to emulate the magician corps, a flowing cape of navy and ivory rolling down his back, his shirt that same navy color, a peaked cap over his head pulled nearly down to his eyes. Pinned to his chest were several medals marking off his achievements in both the militia and the magician corps, his rank a bold emblem over his heart. But when he looked in the mirror, he picked out the subtle indications of his place as regent. The red and gold cord that hung from his shoulder, the golden filigree embellishments along his hat, the decorated sheathes he traded for his typical combat ones. As a ranking member of society, he would be allowed to carry his weapons to the ball, though it had been highly discouraged to him by both Aegis and Magia, not that he had paid them any attention. All and all, he looked proper, regal, picturesque. 

He looked like a king. 

Something unsettled rolled around his stomach, but it was far too late to have anything changed. Guests were arriving. Musicians were warming up. The ball was set. He just had to make it through the night, then all he would have to face were the typical festival activities. His presence specifically as regent was not required at any of those events, though he had planned to attend as commander to many of the militia and magician corps games. He knew Sora would like those as well. 

Speaking of... 

“How is Sora doing?” Yozora glanced in the mirror to the figure looking over his shoulder. Aegis was dressed in his most formal militia uniform, as stern and proper as any military officer should be, though he had rolled up the sleeves of his jacket. 

“Well enough. Rould was helping him last I saw.” 

Yozora nodded. Of everyone at Cathedra Veri, Rould might be the only one capable of wrangling Sora into his dresswear with minimal issues. The butler had taken to Sora quite easily and Sora to him, though Yozora had never doubted that Sora would get along with just about anyone. Rould could be a bit pickier, often snubbing his nose at people he deemed fake or petty. Of course, Sora was neither of those things and perhaps he shouldn’t have been surprised at all that Rould had taken a liking to him. 

Yozora tugged at his collar and rolled his shoulders back, taking one last look in the mirror, forcing back a grimace before turning to Aegis. “Well, let’s get this over with.”

Aegis rumbled out a laugh, following behind him. 

As regent, it wasn’t required that Yozora be the first one at the ball. In fact, that would have been frowned upon. However, it was vital he make an appearance and spend the long night hours speaking with nearly every single person who attended. Aegis and Magia were to remain with him, as was customary. Yozora had thought about keeping Sora nearby as well, but knew the boy wouldn’t have been happy with that, so he only asked that he cause no trouble and gave him free rein. Militia members were set to watch the partygoers and Yozora had told Rould to stick around and keep an eye on Sora. He wasn’t expecting trouble, per say, but he was more than prepared to swoop in if necessary. They’d prepared Sora as much as they could and Yozora had already given orders to circulate information that he was simply a boy who had come under Yozora’s care. Even with these preparations, he was sure other questions would come up, questions Sora wouldn’t necessarily know how to answer. He’d have to be there to pick up any extra attention that might come Sora’s way, but he was prepared. Or at least, as prepared as one could be given the situation. 

Aegis led the way to the ballroom, where the two slipped in from a side hallway, opting not to enter via the grand staircase as most people did. It offered an air of mystique to Yozora as well as kept an entire crowd from swooping around him the moment he stepped onto the floor. For Yozora, it also afforded him some separation from his regent title. A king would walk through the grand entrance. A commander would slip in to silently observe. 

He took the momentary reprieve of attention to scan the crowd. As expected, everyone who was anyone in the city was in attendance. Magia was posted at the grand staircase, perhaps in anticipation of Yozora entering from them. He wasn’t going to approve of Yozora’s actual entrance. A voice over the din of conversation caught his attention, drawing him to Sora, standing near the center of the room speaking with Captain Taro. 

The boy was dressed finely in a pseudo militia uniform that would both help him blend in but also mark him as Yozora’s guest to anyone who paid close enough attention. Along with Yozora, Aegis, and Magia, Sora also kept his weapon at his belt, though its significance at the ball went completely unnoticed by the boy. It was a bit strange seeing him dressed up. He’s rescued Sora from the crystal wearing rugged clothes clearly made for adventuring and his tastes hadn’t strayed much farther from that. This was much different from what he typically would barrel around Cathedra Veri wearing, but he looked nice and more importantly he looked comfortable and that was all Yozora could ask. 

He let Sora alone for now, trying to catch Magia’s attention over the crowd, though that was a tall order without alerting everyone in the room to his presence. He opted for summoning a reticle near to the mage, catching his attention without being too flashy. Magia’s eyes darted around the room until he finally spotted him and Aegis. A look of disappointment and resignation flashed through across his face, but with a quick glance around, he recovered and slowly took the stairs toward them. 

With Magia making his way toward them, Aegis took a step closer to Yozora’s side. “Shall we get started then?”

“May as well,” Yozora sighed, tugging again at his collar. 

Aegis grinned, pointed to a man standing nearby. “You should start Chikao. Rumor has it he’s been supplying arms to the Revolutionaries. Might be a good idea to remind him who we are and who he is.”

At the mention of those traitors, Yozora’s eyes again flashed to Sora, though the boy was distracted, speaking animatedly to Taro. As it should be. He nodded to Aegis. “Let’s have a chat then, shall we?” 

They hadn’t gone but a few steps when someone called out to Yozora, the first of many of the night. Yozora glanced at Aegis, then to Chikao, but paused long enough for the man to catch up with him, to politely thank him for the invitation, to tell him he looked magnificent and what a fine job he was doing for the city. 

Ah, yes. The formalities had begun.

Yozora suppressed the sigh that threatened to slip from his lips, biting on the edge of his tongue to stop himself, and froze when again, a voice called out over the crowd. 

“Hey! Stop that! What are you doing?”

The voice set Yozora on edge, made the hairs on his neck stand up. It was a voice he had come to listen for. A voice he knew all too well. 

Yozora spun, his hand already reaching for his crossbow when one of Aegis’ shield spells cut through the air at his back, stopping the strike of a dagger hidden in a gloved palm. The figure in front of the guard and Yozora snarled, leaped backward to disappear into the rustling crowd. The urgency and desperation of the swaying crowd grew panicked as the truth of the situation fell over the ballroom. 

“Trouble,” Aegis growled, drawing his halberd, though Yozora paid him no mind, searching, searching, searching the crowd. In the tumble of bodies shoving this way and that, the movement of people trying to sneak through, he couldn’t see over everyone. Nearby, he was aware of Magia shouting and of alarmed gasps that finally drew his attention when Aegis growled.

At the top of the grand staircase, a woman dressed in the color of the Revolution stood, a drama mask drawn down over her face, the dual emotions playing in the shadows of the ballroom. A pistol pointed into the crowd, Yozora feeling the tug of magic as the weapon was aimed at him. 

“Death to the false regent!” The Revolutionary cried, and the pistol snapped back. A shot spun toward Yozora, too fast to see. 

Yozora reached through the veil, tore it open, raced into it, past the bullet, past the guests, up the staircase. His hand reached back through the veil to grasp the Revolutionary by the mask, legs kicking outward to knock her off her feet, sending her tumbling to the crowd below. Her pistol was still smoking in Yozora’s hand when he clenched it, wishing it would fall to ash. 

The tension in the room broke as soon as the woman hit the ground. Guests scattered. Revolutionaries stood their ground. Guards rushed in. Battle tore through the soft music that had once been playing. Over it all, Yozora took advantage of his high perch to search and search, his eyes finally landing on what he’d first sought out.

Near the center of the room, Sora fought with two Revolutionaries, theirs hands clasped around his arms, the boy digging in his heels, trying to squirm away from them. Yozora flipped the pistol around, summoned a reticle to aim, and shot one of the Revolutionaries. He stumbled back with a gasp, releasing Sora, who used the moment of shock to twist, throwing the second Revolutionary over his shoulder, knocking him to the ground below. Sora let out a bit of a gasp, turning to Yozora, confusion and anger burning in his eyes. 

Yozora didn’t have time to explain. He didn’t even have time to reach out to help Sora. The Revolutionaries were closing in. Not just on Sora, but on the staircase where Yozora stood. They were in for the long fight, and there was no avoiding Sora getting his hands dirty.

“Fight!” He shouted, and shot the pistol into the writhing sea of crimson below.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are heating up. Funny thing is, this isn't even the worst to come! 
> 
> Look forward to next week for Yozora kicking ass and Sora doing what he does best.


	9. A Burning Light

After spending far too many hours planning every intricate detail of this ball, Yozora could say that they had not considered what to do in the case of an attack at this scale. For as dangerous as the Revolutionaries could be, they’d never managed to do more than disrupt local events or take down small groups of militia members, or an unsuspecting militia officer accompanied by a rather adventurous boy. An attack of this scale just hadn’t seemed possible with their numbers and their resources. 

Something had changed. Yozora had a sinking suspicion he knew what.

This was the puppet master making his next move. 

Now was not the time to consider any of that. They were in the middle of the fight now. Once they’d gotten everything under control, they’d have time to figure out exactly what had gone wrong. For now, all they had to do was survive.

With the Revolutionaries fighting toward where Yozora stood, the guards swarmed around the grand staircase. Yozora tossed the pistol aside in favor of his crossbow, summoning multiple reticles to aid in his counterattack. The Revolutionaries had had their chance to kill him, though thankfully Aegis had been there to stop it. Now, Yozora was on the attack and there was nothing they could do to stop him. He wasn’t going to lose to these traitors. Not when so much was at stake. 

Most fights Yozora entered were over fairly soon after they started. He and those he surrounded himself with were some of the most powerful warriors in the city. However, even as he summoned more and more reticles and shot more and more bolts into the crowd, he quickly realized his attacks were at most stunning their targets. Some ignored every shot fired at them. Something was protecting them, probably some sort of magic. 

He paused when someone appeared besides him, but kept at the fight when he realized it was only Magia. The mage was muttering under his breath, his gaze focused on the ballroom before them. Then, with a flick of his rapier, a wave of magic spread out over the room, coating the militia and magicians in protective energy. Magia was the best of the best. His spell would keep them safe against the most grievous of wounds, but they had limited time before it would wear off. They had to figure out how to defeat the magic protecting the Revolutionaries and end this. Fast. 

As Yozora took his aim and considered his options, his eyes kept flicking back to where Sora stood. For as many Revolutionaries charged Yozora, a couple would fall back to go after the boy, who had drawn his sword and was holding his own with Captain Taro and Aegis at his back. The guards would keep Sora safe, but all they could do was hold back the tide. For as much as he had claimed to be a warrior and for as much training as he had done, he wasn’t a soldier. While he was a target of the Revolutionaries, he was in danger. They had to get Sora out of there. 

“Where’s Rould?” Yozora had to shout to Magia over the rumble of the battle around them. 

The mage paused to mutter a spell, sending a shockwave through a group of Revolutionaries with a flick of his wrist before he could respond. “I am not your butler’s keeper, but I believe he is somewhere in the fray.”

“Tell him to get Sora out of here!”

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m a little busy at the moment making sure you don’t get killed!” He paused to slash his rapiers forward, sending a wave of magic careening down the staircase. “I trust Captains Taro and Aegis to keep the boy safe and I trust in your training. He’ll be okay. He never was so helpless, now was he?” 

Yozora bit back an oath, though he knew the mage was right. He’d been training with Sora for weeks now. He knew the boy was capable. He’d have to trust in his abilities and Taro and Aegis to keep him safe. For as much as the Revolutionaries were certainly targeting him, their main focus was Yozora, and that was fine by him. Let him be the distraction that kept Sora safe. 

“Something’s different. None of my attacks are working,” Yozora growled as another of his attacks glanced off their target, leaving them almost completely unharmed. 

“Really? I hadn’t noticed.” 

“Now is not the time!” 

“Right,” the mage adjusted his hat. “It’s not any magic I’m familiar with protecting them. If it were, I’d be able to unravel it. I’m afraid we’re just going to have to break through it.” 

This time, Yozora let the oath slip past him. Crushing magic with brute force was absolutely possible, but it was a chore. A scan of the crowd told Yozora that most of the normal guests had fled, leaving only the guards and the Revolutionaries. He could end this quickly, but it would be tricky. However, they had no other choice. He had to try. 

Taking a breath, he raised his arm, feeling his fingers tingle as he prepared to summon his greatest weapon, only to jerk to a stop when Magia’s hand flew outward, catching him. 

“Don’t even think about it!” The mage hissed. “There’s too many people here. Too much gravitational force to manipulate. You’d exhaust yourself and if it wasn’t enough to stop them all, you’d be in a lot of trouble.” 

Yozora growled, but he conceded to what the mage said. Fine. They had to whittle the field down a little first. 

Again, he raised an arm, this time summoning several drones, reality warping to shape to his will as they whirred to life. Once active, they zipped into the crowd, blocking attacks and smashing into the Revolutionaries, some summoning distorting fields that stopped attacks midair and redirected them back toward the offender. Yozora paused to watch all of this, to see if the drones would have any effect on the battle, though his attention was soon gripped when movement near Magia had him spinning, raising his crossbow to defend the mage. A bolt careened through the air, slashed the space between the mage and Revolutionary, who paused just long enough for Yozora to leap forward, his sword humming with energy.

The Revolutionary caught Yozora’s sword on his own, tilting his head up to reveal another mask hiding his identity. 

“Who sent you?!” Yozora yelled, but was met with only a growl. 

The growl turned into a sinister laugh, the Revolutionary’s hand snapping into his pocket and pulling out something that looked a lot like a disk. Before Yozora could react, a beam of dark energy lanced forward, cutting along Yozora’s arm and shoulder, snipping sinew and muscles. Yozora let out a cry of pain and surprise, his sword falling from his grasp. One of Magia’s rapiers stopped the Revolutionary from taking Yozora’s head, fire racing up its length and catching on the traitor’s clothing. Magia kicked him away, the Revolutionary flailing at the fire creeping over his clothes before he tripped over the balcony, disappearing into the battle below. 

Yozora spat out several foul words, keeping his hand on his crossbow trigger and supporting his dangling shoulder. His fingers refused to do much more than twitch on his wounded arm. Magia drew Yozora’s hand back and examined the damage, grimacing deeply. 

“What was that?” Yozora hissed, startled when Magia suddenly gasped. 

“Yozora! You’re fading away!” 

Yozora blinked, glanced down at his wounds. Along with the dripping of red blood, tendrils of darkness were seeping from the wound, not unlike what happened beyond the Boundary, in the shadowed parts of the city.

Fear and dread washed over Yozora. He had felt it before, though never quite like this, not on this side of the city. But seeing the beam of dark, seeing its effects, he felt it now as if he were standing in the suffocating sorrow and emptiness of the shadow beyond his city. 

The Revolutionaries had learned how to wield that darkness. 

With a shake of his body, the tendrils faded away, Yozora sharpening his mind to the task at hand. He couldn’t let rage and fear overtake him. Just as the shadow stole your will to continue on, the Revolutionaries’ darkness could do the same. He couldn’t let that happen to him, not now, not ever. 

“Stay behind me,” Magia demanded, stepping to guard Yozora. 

As much as Yozora didn’t like being the one to be protected, his arm was useless and all he had was his crossbow, which had so far proven to be inefficient against whatever magic the Revolutionaries wielded. He grit his teeth, summoned more reticles, let all his power seep into his crossbow, bolts of lasers cutting down into the crowd below. 

Just over the clashing around them, Yozora again was drawn to the sound of someone shouting, his name called out over the crowd. Sora had spotted him, seen his wounded arm, limp and bleeding. The boy looked shocked and angry, unmoving with his sword drooped in front of him. What was he waiting for? A sign? A command? Yozora tried to nod to him, but Sora still just stood there, staring up at him. Something flashed in his eyes, something that might have been more than just the lingering emotion of a memory. Neither Taro nor Aegis seemed to notice. They were both too preoccupied keeping him safe. The Revolutionaries were still trying to reach Sora, still trying to take him. Sora was too in shock to react, to notice as one of them snuck up behind him, reached out to grab him. A reticle appeared, summoned with only a thought, only a wish to save him, and a laser cut past Sora, knocking the Revolutionary to the ground. Sora jolted as the attack whizzed past him, saw the Revolutionary fall, turned back to Yozora. Yozora met his gaze, tried to impart whatever he could to the boy. 

_I’m still fighting. Don’t you dare give up yet._

Whether he understood this or not, when the next Revolutionary snuck past Taro and Aegis, Sora’s sword flashed forward, his heels dug in, and he was back in the fight. Yozora watched for a moment longer, if just to confirm to himself that Sora was going to be okay, and saw when the boy suddenly shoved the Revolutionary aside and raced into the crowd, away from Taro and Aegis. The guards called out in shock as Sora dodged past Revolutionaries and militia members alike. Coming straight for Yozora.

“Stop!” Yozora called, though he knew it was too late. He watched, transfixed, as all at once several Revolutionaries turned toward Sora. Perhaps they reacted to him or perhaps they didn’t. All Yozora knew was that he could practically see their eyes locked onto the boy, their hands reaching for him, trying to subdue him, trying to take him. 

Something hot and angry filled Yozora. He raised his crossbow, trained it toward the Revolutionaries. Lasers cut through them, Yozora pouring every ounce of energy he could into his attacks, finally breaking through the magic protecting them. A jolt of pain raced through Yozora, leaving him panting for breath. He knew this was the first stages of exhaustion creeping at his bones, but Sora was still in danger and the Revolutionaries were still coming for him. Magia was doing his best to hold them off, but their numbers were overwhelming. Had more arrived? Why were there so many?

Magia suddenly yelled and Yozora realized he’d been too focused on one aspect of the battle. Only on keeping Sora safe. When he turned, the dual drama mask of the lead Revolutionary stood before him. A disk was in her hand, her fingers running over it, Yozora given only just enough time to lean, to avoid the brunt of the beam of darkness that shot from it. It cut like claws, knocking the air from Yozora’s chest, taking his knees out from under him, his grip on his crossbow loosening, the reticles fading away.

Yozora gasped and choked, feeling blood pooling at his side. He knew he was hurt. He knew he was fading away. He could feel the darkness clinging to him, dragging him down, felt it twisting at his limbs. He felt an assault at his core, as if his soul were being torn apart around the edges. 

A hand grasped his collar and yanked him up. The Revolutionary’s face was covered, but Yozora could imagine the snarl on her lips.

“It’s true,” she hissed. “The darkness clings to you. You’re overcome with rage and despair.” She hefted a knife above him, darkness clawing at its edges. “You are not worthy to rule this city, to lead us to peace. You will fall here, today! The darkness will take you!”

The knife flashed forward. Yozora did not flinch as it came toward him. He reached for magic, a drone summoned at his fingertips, the knife sliding into its mechanical body instead of Yozora, startling the Revolutionary. With a kick, Yozora sent her sprawling, though she leaped back to her feet with impressive speed, the knife still in her hand. Yozora stumbled back to his feet, glancing for his crossbow. It had been kicked away in the struggle. Too far out of reach. The Revolutionary was coming for him again. In her hand, the knife gleamed with malicious intent.

It would have to do. 

Yozora reached through the veil, tore it aside, reached past the Revolutionary to grasp her knife. As soon as he did, the darkness burned his skin, but he paid it no mind. With a simple twist of his wrist, he ripped the weapon from her grip, pulled free of the veil. The Revolutionary raised her arm, only then realizing her hand was empty just before Yozora drove her knife into her chest. Momentum carried her forward, her body lurching into his, arms sprawling over him, grasping for him on instinct, seeking something stable as her life bled away. 

Yozora shrugged her off, saw she had pulled out the disk again. He wouldn’t have time to dodge this one. Her mask had broken, showing a snarl on her lips and one eyes glaring hard at him, the hatred in them turning it bright white. Her body was starting to warp and melt, her form twisting. The darkness was seeping from her wound. She didn’t seem to notice. Only ran her hand over the disk, and let one last attack rip through the air. 

_“No!”_

Light cut through the space between them, severed the darkness and stopped the attack. The Revolutionary’s eye widened and she snapped toward the source as something leaped over them. In the ringing light of the ballroom, Sora was radiant. His sword cut downward with streaks of gold and silver, his entire body aflame in the light. The Revolutionary cried out in pain, her voice no longer human, her body dissolving as a monster’s would. Above her, Sora stood, panting. Another Revolutionary charged forward and he hefted his sword, a snarl on his lips, the light wicking off of him in a violent and gorgeous display. 

Yozora swayed at the sight of him. He looked... different. Powerful. Strong. Like there wasn’t a force in the world that could stop him. In his hands, he wielded his sword with the confidence of someone who had held it for years. Except, in the light that bathed over him, it didn’t look like a sword anymore. 

Yozora blinked, blinked again, but he couldn’t deny that in the flickers of rays between his strides, something that was golden and silver was held in Sora’s hands, something that was heavier and longer than his sword had ever been. It was something Yozora could imagine fitting easily into the deep stance Sora took, the balanced posture he so naturally fell into even after so many weeks of training.

It looked… like a giant key? 

Again, Yozora swayed. Reached for his crossbow. It was too far away. He reached for the veil, intending the cross the space between him and his weapon. But when he reached, the tear gazed back at him. It did not open. It simply looked down at him. The veil remained locked as his hand fell to the ground, as he shifted back to reality, as he began falling into something much different than the world around him. 

Bathed in the light that wicked off of Sora, Yozora closed his eyes, dropped away from the world, a smile still on his face.

\- - -

Yozora knew what it was like to claw his way up from a deep, wounded unconsciousness. This was not the first time he’d found himself laying battered and bleeding to death on the ground. It had been a long time, but the feeling was one you never forgot. And so, he knew what was happening when his soul seeped away from his body, when he tumbled into something dark and suffocating, as if he were suspended in water. He floated, drifting listlessly, aimlessly, simply trying to keep breath in his body. But even that was slipping away. _He_ was slipping away. Falling deeper and deeper, deeper than he’d ever gone before.

_I must be dying._

The thought crashed through the water around him, sent up hundreds of bubbles as he slipped to the lowest depths. He reached a hand toward the surface, but the light shining above was quickly fading away. It rippled outward, each circle growing smaller and smaller. 

It had been a good life, he supposed. He hadn’t gotten to see the rise of the true king. That was perhaps his only regret. Oh, and not seeing Sora back to where he belonged. Leaving the boy was perhaps just as painful as realizing his one greatest wish wouldn’t be recognized in his lifetime. Ah, well. Everything else had been good. And he supposed it wasn’t the worst way to die. It had been a valiant fight, a warrior’s death. He’d take some solace in that.

Just as Yozora closed his eyes, allowing the last rays of light to slip away, the light resurged, something yanking him back from the murky depths. When Yozora opened his eyes, someone was reaching for him. Even so far down, he felt a trickle of warmth trail over his face. A smile lit the space around them. 

“Sora?” Yozora was surprised to see the boy. Fear raced through him when he remembered where he was. Had Sora been wounded? Was he dying as well? The thoughts had Yozora flailing for the boy, reaching for him, pulling himself back from the depths to get to him. Sora met him in the murky waters grasped his wrist. 

“It’s not over yet,” the boy smiled at Yozora, guided him toward the surface. “There’s still a lot of adventures I want to go on. And you have to come with me! Promise?

_Adventures?_ Yozora felt his fingers grasp Sora’s hand, felt the water thin around them. He opened his eyes, saw the flickering light of life above them. 

“I promise,” he said, and they broke through the surface. 

\- - -

When next Yozora opened his eyes, it was not to a warm smile and a radiant light. It was to the dim glow that rested all around him, laid around a small room that looked vaguely familiar but took him several moments to realize it was the medical ward. The ward itself was empty of anything unusual, save for a lone figure who was seated next to him. A boy, his head bowed toward his lap. A quick scan proved he was not hurt. Of all the things he wanted to see when waking up after a near death experience, Sora well and uninjured was a top priority, but he would have preferred to see the boy smiling.

Slowly, his body aching, Yozora reached out. Sora didn’t notice him, not until Yozora drew back his finger and flicked him on the forehead. Sora reeled away, hand flying to his head, eyes wide in surprise. He blinked at Yozora, surprise and shock quickly giving way to a softer smile, to the recognition that everything was okay. 

“Hey,” Sora spoke softly, the first time Yozora had ever heard him talk with such a tone. “How you are feeling?”

Yozora grunted noncommittally, but Sora still grinned, understanding his meaning. Yozora allowed the boy a moment to settle, lower his hand and let his smile deepen, before he opened parched lips and said, “What did I tell you about self sacrificing?”

At this, Sora gave a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his head. “Sorry. It’s just, I saw you were hurt. I… I didn’t want anything bad to happen to you.”

“Right. And what happened because you tried to jump in?”

Immediately, Sora’s face fell. His hand dropped to his lap, his head drooped. “You got hurt.”

“Right,” Yozora paused for a moment, then ruffled Sora’s hair. “It’s all right. Turned out okay in the end.” He withdrew his hand, waited for Sora to carefully meet his gaze. “Are you all right? You weren’t hurt too badly were you?”

The boy shook his head. “You were the only one seriously injured. Everyone else was just a few scrapes and bruises.” He showed his wrist, which had bruises in the perfect outlines of someone’s fingers. “Nothing a couple of days won’t fix.” 

Despite how minor the injuries may be, Yozora still wasn’t happy to see them. Those Revolutionaries had really tried to take him. And Yozora hadn’t been much help in keeping him safe. He’d done most of the fighting on his own. 

Memories of Sora fighting flooded back immediately, along with a swirl of light, silver and gold at the boy’s fingertips. He glanced down, saw the boys’ sword at his side. Why had he ever thought it had been anything else? Instead of dwelling, he chalked it up to an addled mind on the verge of collapse, though instead of the gorgeous light Sora had summoned. He’d wielded it so expertly, cutting through the darkness, vanquishing the twisted Revolutionary. His light had been so powerful, so strong. Where had it come from?

Slowly, Yozora pushed himself up, Sora’s hands hovering over him when he groaned. He sat up, leaned against the wall for support, facing the boy. Somehow, he was surprised to see he still looked the same. Since when had he become so strong? When had he morphed from being a helpless, lost boy to a confident young man? 

Or maybe, he’d been that all this time. Maybe Yozora just hadn’t paid attention enough to see it.

Still, he smiled and said, “You fought well. You summoned such a powerful light. It was beautiful.”

At this, a genuine smile lit Sora’s face, a flush of embarrassment touching his cheeks. “Yeah,” he stared into his palm. “It was weird. It just sort of happened. I saw you were in danger and I just leaped in."

“It must be the power of the crystal. That’s why the Revolutionaries are after you. They want that power.”

Sora considered him, then his palm, and shook his head. Yozora raised an eyebrow at him, even more so when the boy grinned mischievously at him. “That wasn’t the crystal’s light. It was the light of my heart!”

“Your… heart?”

“Sure!” Sora pressed a hand to his chest. “When I saw you were in danger, all I wanted with all my heart was to be able to save you. I wished and I wished, and light of my heart came through to help me protect you.” 

It seemed a strange explanation. Then again, Yozora had never seen light wielded as a physical force, not even with magic. He hadn’t seen darkness used as the Revolutionaries had used it either, but the thought that Sora could summon forth the light just as they called upon the darkness both frightened and reassured him. They had someone who could help combat the dark. They weren’t helpless in this fight. If they could figure out how to wield the light as the Revolutionaries now wielded the dark, then they had a chance. Sora’s discovery, his own strength and power, could become their saving grace.

The thought had Yozora laughing. He had first rescued the boy in an impossible situation and now Sora could possibly save them all in return. He could now cut through the darkness that had once enshrouded him. 

He’d grown so strong. Or maybe, he’d always been this strong and they had just never noticed.

“Hey, Yozora,” Sora’s voice had taken on an uncertain tone. He wasn’t smiling anymore. 

Yozora frowned. “What’s wrong?”

Sora shook his head, but he wouldn’t look up at Yozora. “Nothing. It’s just… I wanted to ask you something.”

Yozora waited, but the boy didn’t speak further. “All right. Ask me anything you want.”

Sora clenched his fists in his lap. He took in a breath, raised his chin. His expression was fierce and determined. Yozora had seen it before. It was missing a snarl, but it was the same expression he’d worn when in battle, and Yozora knew from that look that nothing was going to stop Sora from what he wanted, from what he was thinking. 

“Please let me stay with you and keep training! I want to learn more from you and Aegis and Magia and Captain Taro! I want to stay and help protect you and help you find the true king!”

He fell silent, but the determined line on his face told Yozora that whatever he said wouldn’t matter. Sora had made up his mind. This was what he was going to do. 

It made Yozora laugh, let him relax back in his bed, though he winced when a spike of pain raced up his side. Sora reached forward as if to help, but Yozora raised a hand, stayed his advance. He smiled at the boy. 

“Feels like I’m going to be out of commission for at least a little while. Lucky for you, I bet Magia will be itching to help you unlock that new magic of yours. And I’m sure while I’m stuck in bed that Aegis will be looking for more warriors to keep an eye on me. Can’t have the Revolutionaries sneaking in to finish the job.” As he spoke, Sora’s face lit up more and more, until he was practically bouncing in his seat. He let out a cheer, nearly leaped to his feet, but stopped when Yozora’s voice cut through the celebration, _"However._ You have to promise me something in return.”

Sora blinked at him. “Well sure, anything!” 

“You really shouldn’t promise people _anything,”_ Yozora sighed, but he moved on. “The Revolutionaries really tried to grab you. We got lucky, both you and I. I don’t want to see you get hurt. So you have to promise to be very careful. Don’t put yourself in harm’s way like that again, no matter what. If I tell you to run, you run. If I tell you to fight, you fight, but first and foremost to keep yourself safe. Got it?”

Sora tilted his head, bit his lip, and for a moment Yozora thought he was actually going to decline. But then he nodded, though reluctant. “All right. I promise, I’ll be more careful.”

“Good. In the meantime, we’ll train you up so you can keep yourself safe and so you can keep an eye on everyone else too.” Sora smiled at his words, and not for the first time, Yozora felt himself unconsciously slip into a smile of his own. “Just be patient and learn as well as you can.”

Sora pumped his fist in the air. “I promise!” 

Yozora shook his head, but he offered his hand, his own promise. Sora shook his hand, his grip firm, resolute. His smile was as dazzling and confident as ever. In that moment, he was just as radiant as he had been on the battlefield. Just as in those final seconds before fading away, Yozora relaxed. Enjoyed the moment. Allowed peace to settle into his bones, his soul, his heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love the smell of character developments in the face of near death in the morning =P
> 
> Next week: a time skip! I am not sorry, in advance.


	10. A Robed Figure

**One Year Later**

Sora raced forward, barreling headlong into the noddle shop at the end of the street, Yozora letting off a sigh as he followed in his wake. They’d been to the shop more than once, enough times that when they stepped inside, they were greeted not as guests, but as friends, family. They had carved out a usual spot tucked into the far corner, away from prying eyes, though low whispers followed them, excited smiles and giddy waves turned toward them. Yozora paid them no mind, but Sora, always the crowd pleaser, returned those smiles and waves until they were settled in their seats. The waitress confirmed their usual orders and left them for a moment of peace.

Even if Sora had been dragging him out of Cathedra Veri and into public for several months now, Yozora couldn’t say he was getting used to it. After spending so long stuck in the walls of the capitol, he’d grown accustomed to seeing the same faces and hallways and paintings over and over again. He’d thought himself stuck, trapped, held by the intense demands of his duties as commander and regent. Then, Sora had come along and promptly torn away all preconceived notions of his. Not only did he have time to go out into public, but he often found the trips relaxing. He wasn’t anticipating someone walking through the doors of the noodle shop to demand the latest generator output numbers, after all. Being away from it all had become somewhat of a solace. Sora made sure of that. 

This particular outing, however, was slightly different. While the noddle shop was one of Sora’s favorites, that wasn’t why he had chosen it for dinner and Yozora knew it. He’d chosen it because it was as near to the Boundary as Yozora ever let him go and there was a question, more like a promise, hanging over them that Sora had been itching to grab for. Even as they sat across from each other, having only just settled in their seats, Yozora waited for the boy to break the silence first. 

“When are you, Aegis, and Magia going across the Boundary next?” It was smart of him to ask about the mission first, because no matter what, Yozora wasn’t going to let him go across the Boundary and he knew that. It was only a diversionary tactic, but a smart one. 

“Three days. We’ll leave in the morning and hopefully be back before dark, but it depends on how much trouble we run into,” Yozora said, giving no voice to the other question hanging over them.

Sora hummed, intertwining his fingers and leaning back into them, his hands tucked behind his head. “And how far do you think you’re going to get?”

“As far as we can,” Yozora sighed. “Farthest we’ve gone before is ten miles. We’re planning on making that at least.”

“That’s why you’re taking the truck,” Sora completed, a light sparking in his eyes. 

The question was lingering on his tongue. Yozora could almost see it, flicking right along Sora’s teeth. He rested his head in his palm. “Yes. In theory, it’ll make it over the broken roads and won’t disintegrate into the darkness as quickly. If your light magic is any good.” 

Sora puffed out his cheeks, pinched his eyebrows together. “If something goes wrong, it’s not going to be because of what I did. You aren’t hardly letting me help, after all.” 

“Not true,” Yozora maybe shouldn’t have enjoyed teasing him as much as he did. “You were a great help getting the truck ready to move through the darkness. Who knows? It may be your magic that brings us out the other side of the shadow.”

“Right!” Sora suddenly slammed both hands on the table, unable to hold back anymore. He lifted his chin, eyes blazing in determination. “That’s why I really think you should let me go with you to the Boundary!” There was only a moment of quiet, when Sora took in a huge breath and Yozora just blinked passively at him. “I can still help you even on this side of the Boundary! I know you won’t let me go into the shadow, but at least give me the chance to help you guys as much as I can!”

“And what did you have in mind to help?” Yozora gestured outward, out to the darkness, the shadow slowly creeping in on the city. They’d had to move the Boundary back recently. Slowly, they were losing ground. Even after all this time. “You’re right, it’s too dangerous for you to come with us across the Boundary, so what can you do from the city?”

“Simple!” Sora opened his palm, light dancing between his fingers. It was still a marvel to see sometimes. Yozora took a moment to admire it. The boy had come a long way. “I can project my light ahead of you, cut through the darkness. Who knows how far it’ll reach or how much it’ll keep the darkness back, but we should at least try, shouldn’t we? That is the goal ultimately, isn’t it? For me to grow strong enough to push the shadow back. How can I measure how much stronger I’ve gotten if you don’t let me even try?” 

Even if he had a valid point, Yozora still felt the bite of a frown tug at the corner of his lips. It had been suggested to him, more than once, that Sora’s light may be strong enough to cut through the darkness, to even push it back. It would take monumental strength for such a feat. But if he could at least push a little against the darkness, it could keep more streets from fading into the shadows. He could help them hold the shadow at bay, if only for a little longer. And yet, Yozora had never allowed him to try. He’d been too afraid of the consequences. Of what it would mean for Sora if they discovered he could do this. He was afraid of seeing Sora get hurt, of seeing him overwhelmed, of watching him fade away as he had seen so many times to so many others. 

Somehow, it was different hearing the suggestion from the boy. In the past year, he’d grown so much stronger. Enough to give Aegis and Magia a run for their money and for Yozora to have to sweat during their sparring. Whether it came from his heart or from the crystal, Sora had a unique power, one that none of them had quite been able to understand. Aside from this power, Sora had grown stronger on his own. He’d slipped quite easily back into the warrior he had once been, to the warrior he was always meant to be. 

The boy sitting in front of Yozora was very different from the boy he’d found trapped in a crystal throne all those months ago, having grown into a strong young man. But that didn’t mean Yozora was ready to throw him headfirst into the fire. Sora wasn’t quite prepared to face that fight yet, even if he thought he was. But he was right in questioning Yozora’s reluctance to let him test out his strength. If Sora wanted to try, then he should be allowed, if only to see if he had the capability of cutting through the darkness. And if he didn’t, then Yozora wouldn’t have to worry over it anymore. 

Yozora mulled over these thoughts while Sora waited, not quite patiently, for him to speak. When Sora made an inquisitive noise, Yozora dismissed him with a wave. “Let’s just enjoy our dinner right now. We can discuss this later.”

Sora shook his head. “You’ve been pushing this off for too long!”

Yozora couldn’t help but to chuckle at Sora’s frustration, at just how right he was. “Food first. Business later.” 

It was something said by enough people around Cathedra Veri that Sora didn’t protest this time, but he obviously was not happy. He pouted spectacularly, Yozora unable to stop himself from smirking in response.

“So have you had any more success in using any other magic?”

Sora blinked at him, clearly decided whether to press the issue or not, though eventually, he answered Yozora’s question. While at first he spoke somewhat reserved and frustrated, he soon opened up, unable to stay angry for any amount of time. It was a quality of his that Yozora was sometimes jealous of, but in this instance, he was happy to continue the conversation without fuss. When their food arrived, Sora only paused in between one breath to thank the waitress before continuing. 

Their food was excellent, as it always was. Sora kept with the conversation, often talking with his mouth full. Yozora let him speak, simply enjoying his food and listening to the boy. Their outings hadn’t changed since Sora had first suggested it. Often, he would ask about things Yozora had done with Aegis and Magia, how they had met, some of their most daring exploits. In return, Yozora enjoyed hearing about Sora training with the militia members and magicians corps. 

Halfway through their meal, Yozora noticed as Sora let the conversation slip into a contented quiet. A glance at the boy’s face revealed nothing immediately wrong, nothing plainly written on his face. Just a quiet contemplation. However, soon enough something dripped into the silence, something Yozora didn’t notice at first, but as it grew colder, more easy to identify, he returned his gaze to Sora, saw that his contentment had slipped away. Now he was frowning, thoughtful, puzzled. Uncertain. 

“Something on your mind?” Yozora asked.

Sora blinked up at him, shook his head. “Not really,” he poked at his food. Yozora was surprised to see he hadn’t eaten much. “It’s just... I had this weird feeling this morning.”

“A memory?” It was rare, but every now and then, Sora would wake with some fleeting image or emotion, something that would send him racing to find Yozora, to explain everything he could in as much detail. No matter how many times this had happened, Sora had never remembered anything quite as vividly as he had that boy from his dream so long ago. Time seemed to be eroding whatever memories he might still have, wrinkling them at the edges, the images fading. They had long ago stopped trying to unlock those memories, realizing that it was both harmful and useless to push Sora anymore. It only made him feel like something was wrong, something was missing, that _he_ was somehow damaged for it. Whatever past he had was gone. All they had was the present and the future, and it was these that Yozora focused all his attention on, making sure whatever they were, they were bright and happy for the boy. Still, if Sora did remember something, it was unusual for him not to say anything to Yozora. So the news that something had happened and Sora had decided not to say anything until this moment concerned him. 

However to Yozora’s question, Sora only tilted his head. “Not really. It was more just a feeling. Like my stomach was twisting up in knots and when I looked up, I just wanted to fly away.” He made a frustrated noise, shut his eyes. “No, that’s not it. It’s like someone was calling my name and I wanted so badly to go to them, but I couldn’t figure out where they were.” 

The words settled over Yozora, made him look up, watch as Sora grappled with something, his hand over his heart. In all the time Yozora had known him, Sora had never spoken like this before. This was something different. Something that made Yozora’s skin crawl and put him on guard. 

He waited, but the boy said nothing else, worrying the inside of his cheek in thought. “Are you sure it wasn’t just a dream?” Yozora asked. 

Sora shook his head, lifted his hand. The motion was a familiar one. His fingers reached forward, curling inward to grasp at something unseen. Yozora had seen it time and time again. Still, nothing changed. 

“I felt it in my heart. Someone was calling me.” 

“Someone you knew?”

He shrugged, let his hand drop. “Maybe. I don’t know what else it would be.”

“Hmm.” It was Yozora’s turn to push his food around. “We’ll speak with the magicians. See if they have any ideas.” 

With a sigh, Sora shook his head. “You know the magicians never know what’s going on. It’s something I have to figure out on my own.”

Yozora paused, lifted his gaze. Sora was staring down into his bowl, still biting his cheek. “You know that’s not true.” Sora’s gaze lifted to meet his. “We can work through it together. We’ll figure out what’s going on.” 

For a moment, just a moment, Sora looked unconvinced. Then, he shoveled an exorbitant amount of food into his mouth and swallowed almost without chewing. 

“Food’s done! Time to talk business!” 

Yozora stifled a snort, choosing instead to take another bite so he wouldn’t have to talk. Instead of waiting for him to speak, Sora took the opportunity to launch into a list of reasons why he should be allowed to help. This was clearly something he had been thinking about for a long time. He was almost never so organized to have a list of relevant things to say for any given conversation. Yozora let him speak while he finished his food, never once acknowledging him one way or the other. When he pushed his plate aside, Sora gasped for breath, having talked as much as he could in as little time as humanly possible. 

As Sora caught his breath, Yozora summoned the comms screen on his gauntlet. Sora watched him, interested, until his own gauntlet beeped and he checked his screen, seeing the new entry on his calendar for the time of the expedition. 

The boy’s face lit up in excitement, but Yozora held up a hand before he could speak. “There are some conditions to this,” he said, Sora nodding, very serious. Which was good. He had to understand just how serious this was. Until now, there had been plenty of sparring and practice exercises, small missions with elite militia and magician teams. This was going to be different. Sora might know that, but Yozora wanted him to _understand_ it. 

“One, you will not, under any circumstances, cross the Boundary. I’m trusting you not to be reckless. If you break that trust, you’re going to have a hard time earning it back.” 

“I know, I understand.” Sora smiled widely at him. “You can’t tell me I’ve gotten a little better at thinking before I act!”

“Only a little,” Yozora grumbled, then held up two fingers. “Two, Captain Taro is going to oversee the operation from the Boundary. If he gives an order, you’ll follow it.” 

“Easy enough.”

Yozora raised an eyebrow, held up a third finger. “And the last condition,” he paused, waited until Sora leaned forward in anticipation, “if something happens to us, to all of us and we don’t come back, you’ll run away.” 

Something unspoken passed between them. Something that had Sora tensing, searching Yozora for what he was really saying. It wasn’t something he had ever brought up before. Not in any serious degree. But he’d always believed that Sora understood this single wish of his. Perhaps that hope had just been wistful thinking. 

Yozora let his hand drop, voice lowered for only Sora to hear. “If we don’t come back, I can’t guarantee that the Revolutionaries or even some of the militia officers or magicians might not come to find you, to use you for their own purposes. You can’t let them do that. So run away. Find a safe place. Someone like Captain Taro will find you eventually and help you get somewhere safe. Just don’t trust anyone I wouldn’t trust.”

“All right, but you’re going to come back!” Sora insisted, leaning forward. 

“Sora, promise me this.” 

The boy snapped back as if Yozora had slapped him. But Yozora didn’t relent. He waited, unmoving, for Sora to say something. 

Slowly, the boy’s face fell. It fell from shock and denial into something that calmed Yozora’s anxious heart. A familiar expression carved itself onto Sora’s face. One of fiery determination and fierce resolve. 

He nodded. “I promise. But you have to accept that if that happens, then I’ll stand up and fight for what’s right.”

“Fine, just don’t go off and try to do everything by yourself.” Yozora sighed when Sora nodded. “Long as we can agree to these terms, then you may come to the Boundary with us. We’ll see just how strong you’ve become.” 

Sora grinned eagerly, pumping his fists, though he paused when Yozora ruffled his hair.

“And to answer your question, yes, we will be coming back. I don’t have any plans to fade away anytime soon. I still have a job to do.”

Sora’s grin widened. “A city to protect!”

_And so much more._ The thought made Yozora frown, though he wasn’t sure why. 

Before Sora noticed, he stood. “Let’s get back. It’s getting late.” 

“Hey, we’re not far from the Boundary! We should go make sure everyone is okay there,” Sora suggested, following Yozora closely behind. 

“No, Sora. That is not going to happen,” Yozora placed a large bill on the counter for their meal before slipping out the door with Sora on his heels. 

“Aww, c’mon! They’d be really glad to see us!” 

Yozora just sighed, tilting his head upward. A rolling wave of clouds was partially obscuring the pale yellow light of the moon. A rumble of thunder boomed overhead. A dreary night. He was aware of Sora turning back toward the street, searching for where Rould would bring the car, chattering away about how everyone would be so grateful for their help if they just popped by the Boundary, just for a second. A raindrop splashed across Yozora’s gauntlet when he lifted it, tapping on several keys to summon Rould to their location. It would be a few more minutes before he arrived, but a beep told Yozora he’d received the message and was on his way. 

Just before lowering his hand, movement caught Yozora’s attention. A swish, a rocking motion, a pair of broad shoulders coming toward him. When he looked up, he was facing the thinned crowd stumbling up and down the street around him, hurrying to get inside before the rain started. Among all the faces, a blank, empty darkness stared at him. 

Something cold rolled up Yozora’s body, making his fingers twitch and his vision sharpen. Someone was coming toward him, dressed in a long, black cloak. Arms relaxed at his side. Face completely hidden in a deep cowl. 

Yozora watched this figure approach, separate from the crowd even as it walked amongst the people. As the steps between them decreased, he was acutely aware of the distance, aware of Sora at his side, aware of the boy still rambling on, not realizing anything was happening. In fact, nobody was reacting. Nobody felt the shiver of unease that rose up along Yozora’s arms, that made his fingers twitch along his gauntlet, made them type out additional commands before he turned to place himself between the figure and Sora. 

“Stop there,” he called, the figure lifting their head slightly, but pausing. “That’s far enough.” Yozora’s finger itched to be in the trigger of his crossbow, but he held it down. “Whoever you are, I don’t want any trouble. Turn around now.” 

“Wha—! Trouble?” The figure spun over one shoulder then the other, then pointed to himself. “Who me? That’s a little rude, don’t you think?” 

“Call it intuition,” Yozora nodded up the street. “On your way.” 

“Oh, sorry, you see, I’m kind of here for a specific reason. You could almost say I’m on a quest!” The figure shrugged, as if it were simply unavoidable. “Can’t just turn back now, can I?”

“Yes, you can.” Yozora took a step forward. Let his voice hold no room for argument. Behind him, he felt Sora still standing there, but the boy wasn’t talking anymore. Yozora didn’t turn to look. Knowing he was still there, right at his back, that was enough. “By order of your regent, you will obey me.”

At this, the robed figure let out a laugh. “Arrogant of you to assume you’re my regent. I like that spunk, kid!” His gaze lifted upward, but Yozora kept his focus. “I’m afraid we are running out of time. Places to be, people to see, you know, the usual.” 

“Enough!” Yozora couldn’t stop his hand from grasping his crossbow, from lifting it to aim at the figure. The others in the crowd, those just trying to go about their own business, froze at the sight of his weapon, a worried murmur traveling through the group. Some ran. Some lingered. All that mattered was the robed figure before him. “I told you to leave. Why don’t you obey me?”

Although he couldn’t see the figure’s eyes, he imagined them boring into him, peering through the darkness to glare at him. His head tilted, and he called, “Sora!” 

At the sound of the boy’s name, Yozora flinched, turned to find him. Sora’s head was tilted back, his body lax and unmoving. Eyes wide, bathed in the moonlight. He seemed in a trance, held by some will not his own. His gaze was up to the sky, where the clouds had moved over the moon. In the eerie coming of storms, they had marked the moon into the shape of a heart. 

“You can feel it, can’t you?” The figure said, Yozora’s attention snapping back to him. 

“Shut up!” He yelled, putting himself between the figure and Sora. 

The figure ignored him, his voice calling over everything else, “Your keyblade has been called. Your very heart! That’s the hollow feeling you have right now.”

“I said shut up!” Yozora took a step forward, and something happened. 

In the moments that followed, he thought to himself that it was strange. In all his years, in all the times he had held that weapon, he had always been in control. In fact, for most of his life, he’d been in control. Control was central to everything he did. He was in control. Of his body, his mind, his spirit. His city, his soldiers, his magicians. He was in control.

In that moment, as he stared into the darkness of the figure’s cowl and his body shook and his mind hurt and something in his chest ached, he lost control. His finger tightened on the trigger.

A bolt careened through the air, dust and smoke billowing up in its path. Yozora stood, wondering what had just happened. Had he… really just attacked someone? Just like that? 

But he didn’t have time to think about it. 

He ran to Sora, shook him. “Sora! Snap out of it! We need to go!” 

Sora swayed in his grip, nearly stumbled to his knees when Yozora tried to pull him along. Slowly, his hand came up to his head, pressed to his temple. Eyes wide and searching. 

“Sora!” Yozora tried to pull him along, paused when he noticed something moving in the dust.

The robed figure was stepping forward again. Striding with confidence. Yozora saw no marks on his robe, nothing to indicate his attack had had any effect. 

“You know, I really did try to do this nicely,” he let out a dramatic sigh, gave a flail of his arms. “The plan was to just sneak in and sneak out, you know? Don’t cause any trouble, just do what we have to do. Ah well,” he shrugged. “What can I say? I suppose I always knew the day would come when I’d have to get my hands dirty.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well you all _knew_ MoM was going to show up eventually. I find his character quite hard to write though, so hopefully I do his zaniness justice.
> 
> Eyyy, only one more chapter left in part one! Exciting stuff.


	11. A Doomed Promise

Having sent the first blow, Yozora wrapped an arm around Sora and held his crossbow out with the other, ready for anything. The boy stumbled again, groaned. His own sword hung at his side, but he was in no condition to fight. Yozora would have to do this on his own. 

“Who are you?” Yozora shouted. 

The figure made a dismissive gesture. “Not anyone too important. Some people used to call me Master. Some people didn’t. They called me something else. Hey, do you often just shoot innocent people you run into on the street? Because that really seems counterproductive. This isn’t really a fight. And if it was, it wouldn’t be yours.”

“If you’re after Sora then it’s absolutely my fight.” Yozora dug his feet in, tightened his grip on Sora. “I won’t let you come any closer!” 

“Hmm,” the figure scratched at his chin, hidden in the darkness. “That could be an issue. I don’t really want to get into a fight with you. However....”

Between one blink and the next, Yozora realized he was gripping nothing but air. When he looked, his crossbow was being tossed aside by the figure, who took another step forward. 

“This world’s time is almost up. Another world is calling. We have to leave now.” 

Yozora stumbled back, dragged Sora with him. He grabbed for his sword, but the instant it was in his hand and ready to use, it was gone, being tossed away. He reached for the veil, tearing it open. Before he could take a single step forward, he was met with a dark force. Something huge and overwhelming filled the tear in the veil, like a wall keeping him from slipping too far in. 

With an oath, he snapped out of the veil, his body growing cold with dread. Control over the veil, his ability to tear reality apart at his will, was his greatest weapon. It was how he had always shaped the battle to his advantage. It was going to be a little more difficult if his opponent controlled the tear, but he would make do. You couldn’t survive for long periods of time between reality anyway. Whatever force invading the tear wouldn’t be there forever. Yozora just had to wait for his time to slip through. 

He summoned magic to his fingertips. His crossbow helped empower his shots, but he wasn’t helpless without it. Reticles still came at his call, lasers ready to deploy. The instant they were, wind blew along the street, a whirlwind of dust and debris that snapped at Yozora’s limbs and broke his concentration. Through it all, the looming figure continued his steady pace toward them. 

A cry of frustration left Yozora, once again summoning reticles to his aid, wasting no time in calling lasers down upon the approaching figure. Even with the dust obstructing his view, his aim was always true. He didn’t need to see to know his attacks would be driving the figure back, away. But something told him that wasn’t the case. Something set at his core, something that had screamed at the sight of the figure in black, something that now told him all this was in vain. 

But he had to try. 

Glancing around, he saw most of the civilians had fled, that the dust had swept aside most everything else. All that was left was him, Sora, and the robed figure hidden in the dust. 

He could more than handle that. 

“Sora,” Yozora whispered, the boy stirring weakly. “Listen to me. I need you to stay down and don’t move.” 

Sora made a noise, though Yozora wasn’t sure if he’d understood or not. He sat the boy against the building, where he may be spared the brunt of what was to come. Then he strode toward the figure.

The figure seemed to rise from the dust, as if Yozora’s resolve had called him to heel. He walked slowly forward, an unstoppable force about to meet its immovable object. “You know, your fight is a pointless one. You should be welcoming the darkness into your city.”

“What do you know?” Yozora planted his feet, splayed his hands. The wind stilled suddenly, the figure pausing as the space around them began to shift. 

There was a reason Yozora was the commander of the entire city. Why he had been chosen to rule as regent in a king’s stead out of all the others. The position hadn’t been given to him because nobody else could hold it. It had been given to him because he was the only person strong enough to hold it. Half of the city respected him and the other half feared him. 

And they had every right to. 

He wasn’t going to lose. Not this time. 

Magic curled around him, shot upward, summoning forth a ball of iron and steel and magic and energy. It hummed dangerously as it emerged into the world, bits and pieces of it whirring, moving, settling into place. A force tugged Yozora upward, another pressed down on the robed figure, who crumbled to the pavement. 

“It’s over,” Yozora stretched his hand out, reached into the veil. This time, he found his path clear. In one heartbeat, his crossbow was back in his hand, in the second, his sword was as well. The next, he was ready to attack, lasers smashing into the figure, sword cutting through the space he had been.

_Been._

Yozora blinked, then again. 

But the figure wasn’t there. He hardly had time to look, barely locked onto the figure standing upright a few feet away before a beam of darkness cut through the air, and the artificial sun behind him exploded. 

The exterior of the sun crumbled inward, the swirling mass of energy curling into itself, spinning quickly out of control, when another beam sliced through it and it exploded outward again. The force of its destruction tossed Yozora aside, broke rippling cracks all along the pavement, shook the city to its very core. No longer under his control, the sun’s force expanded outward and outward, ripping into the fabric of reality around them, threatening to break the city apart. Yozora reached for the tear, found it open and crumbling, the destructive energy of what he had summoned seeping through it. He cut the tear, slammed it shut, spat himself back onto the pavement where he lay, suddenly exhausted. In the aftermath, everything stilled, as if waiting for permission to take a breath. That breath came as dust and dirt began to settle over Yozora’s body. He coughed, pushed himself upright. 

In the falling dust cloud, he could see the figure standing where he had been moments before. In his hands, he twirled something between his fingers, something that flashed with a sinister light.

A Revolutionary’s disk.

“You,” Yozora coughed, struggled to find his feet. “You’re the one who’s corrupted the Revolutionaries aren’t you?” The figure turned toward him just as the cloud thickened, obscuring everything. “The darkness is destroying them! Killing them!” He clenched his fist, felt both helpless and furious when he thought of the Revolutionaries.

Once, they had been simply a group with a different mindset. People who thought the city deserved something better. Then, they had warped to using violence to get what they wanted. In the past few months, Yozora had seen the group shatter. Some began accepting the darkness they once abhorred, relishing in its power and twisting into the monsters that haunted the shadow beyond the Boundary. The others simply tried to survive, to promote their ideals as heralding in a new era. The two factions had split, then they had fought, a vicious, unending war. Yozora and the rest of the militia had simply stood by and watched them tear each other apart. 

Now, he understood where it all had come from. 

“You’re turning them into monsters!” He spat, taking a step forward, though he still didn’t know where to find the figure. 

He was even more surprised when the figure laughed loudly. “You got that backwards, chief! If it makes you feel better, it was never about their cause. It was only ever about surviving. Same thing with Sora. He and I just fell into different crowds is all.” 

“What are you even talking about?!” Yozora snapped, began looking for shadows moving in the dust. 

There was silence for a heartbeat, maybe more. Then, the figure spoke again, “You know, it’s weird how you can get used to things being weird, right?” Yozora glanced around, trying to get his bearings, but all he heard was this madman’s ramblings. “Just think about it, this place is super freaking weird, isn’t it?! And yet, everyone’s stopped questioning it. A shadow that just starts swallowing things up and making people monsters? Eh. Just your typical Tuesday! But it wasn’t always like that, was it?” 

Yozora turned, but he couldn’t pinpoint the source of the voice as the air continued to fall around him. He thought about calling to Sora, froze when the voice began speaking again.

“Have you ever woken up from a really bad dream? When everything’s at its worst, when the darkness closes in and, _wham!_ Suddenly, you’re sitting up in bed, screaming like a little girl, and everything’s just fine! Bet it never occurred to you that can happen to whole worlds.” 

Yozora tried to reach through the veil only for his vision to tilt in protest. Summoning his artificial sun almost always exhausted him. It was something only to be called upon at the most desperate of times. And he hadn’t even really gotten a chance to use it before it was destroyed. 

“What about a dream where you become the monster you’re so afraid of? Yeah, I’ve had one of those before. Always strange, those ones. You hope for it to end, yet when the end comes, it’s all too much. Then, you wake up, and everything’s all right!” 

This man wasn’t making any sense. Yozora scanned the dust again, searched and searched for where he was. He tentatively reached for magic, felt his body tingling in protest. He was exhausted. But it wasn’t over yet. Carefully, he pressed his hands into the dirt, let out a little trail of magic into the earth. Searched for where the figure stood. 

“You see, that’s the nice thing for you about this world. When the darkness takes you, you’ll wake up. It’ll all have been just like a bad dream. Some of us aren’t that lucky. So, in a sense, if you really care about your lonely keyblade wielder, you really should be thanking me for this.”

Very suddenly, Yozora felt a spike of movement through the earth, a footstep not too far away. He ran forward, tore through the dust, found himself standing before the robed figure. He was closing in on Sora, who had stumbled back to his feet, but his eyes were still unfocused and he swayed as if the dust alone could topple him. 

There was no more time to think. Yozora threw himself through the veil, appeared just in time to crash into Sora. When he reached for it again, the veil shrieked at the new body being forced through the tear, but Yozora pushed himself and Sora through and beyond it, only managing to step a few yards away. He put Sora on his feet, felt the blood rushing in his head. This was getting out of hand and quickly. He had to do something. 

“Sora, you have to run!” He didn’t have time to check on the boy, couldn’t turn his attention away from the robed figure. After realizing what had happened, the figure gave a dramatic sigh, before making his way toward them again. “Go! I’ll hold him off!” 

Sora didn’t move. No matter what Yozora said, he just wouldn’t _move._

With another oath, Yozora looked to his gauntlet, ran his hand over as many commands as he thought could help them. It was as much a desperate move as he could do. He simply acted, not really knowing what to do but knowing he had to do something. 

When Sora yelled, Yozora, shocked by the sound, turned, catching just out of the corner of his eye a ray of darkness that cut across his arm, felt the searing pain that lanced along his fingers, his gauntlet sheared away, his skin burned and bleeding. The pain made him stumble, but someone caught him and held him up. He was equally surprised to see Sora, eyes bright once again. For as surprised as he was, Yozora couldn’t let himself lose focus, turning back to the robed figure just in time to see the last fading sparks of darkness fading from the disk in his curled fingers. 

Sora growled, took a step forward, but this time, it was Yozora who held him back. “Sora, I told you to run.”

“You’re hurt.”

As if that changed anything at all.

“You promised me!” Yozora snarled. “Run! Aegis and Magia are on their way! Rould can’t be far. Find anyone, but just run! Go! I can handle this.”

“You can’t!” 

“Sora!” 

Before the name had even left his mouth, Sora had shrugged him off and was running forward. Yozora called his name again, tried to run after him, but Sora was already snapping his hand forward. It was the motion Yozora was so familiar with. In his peaceful, serene moments of remembering something long since passed, the movement was slow, careful, the remnant of a memory long forgotten. In this moment, it was more like during their spars, quick, fluid, a flick of the wrist. Sora’s gauntlet hummed with energy and his sword spun into his hand, a poor imitation of something from his forgotten past. It wasn’t the first time Yozora had seen him summon his sword, but this time it felt different. 

For all the training they had gone through, the Sora charging the robed figure was not the same one Yozora had trained. This was a Sora he’d never known, not really. A warrior from another time, another place. His sword looked clumsy in his hand, Sora grimacing at the hold, off balance as he expected something _more._ Something lost to him long ago, yet something he called to here, in their most dire of moments. Something that had refused his call, and left him open and vulnerable to attack.

And yet, he charged onward. 

Yozora knew he couldn’t last on his own. Not like this. Not unless Yozora got up, did something. _Anything!_

He tried to reach through the veil, but the tear gazed at him without moving. His magic was spent. His body exhausted. His weapons gone. Sora out of his reach. 

_This can’t be it._

The figure raised his hand. Yozora didn’t know what happened, couldn’t actually see anything. All he knew was in the blink of an eye, Sora was sent sprawling away, the sword skittering across the ground. 

“Stop!” Yozora called, too late as the figure stepped to where Sora had landed, the boy unmoving. “Don’t!”

The figure ignored Yozora, reached to Sora’s wrist and unhooked the gauntlet, tossing it away. In a voice perhaps too soft to hear properly, Yozora swore he heard the figure sigh. “You miss it too, don’t you? This world can never offer you what you’ve lost.” 

“Wait!” Yozora was nearly there, nearly close enough to attack, as the figure picked Sora up from the ground. He hung limp and unmoving, his brow wrinkled in distress. 

The figure turned only then to Yozora. Yozora reached forward, amazed by the distance between them. He had been running for so long, yet he felt miles away still. Too far away to stop this.

“You can’t save him,” the madman said. There was no condition to his voice. No maybes. It was absolute. “And it doesn’t really matter. He isn’t what you’ve been looking for. In fact, your truth no longer resides in this world at all.” His words should have meant nothing. And yet, Yozora was struck by the thought that he might be right. That he’d been chasing something all this time that was no longer within his reach. It made sense, after all. He’d been looking for so long. If his truth was somewhere to be found in the city, in the world, he would have found it by now, wouldn’t he have?

_Wouldn’t he have?_

_“But,”_ the figure raised a finger, “if you really want to try, start looking for a walking mirror of yourself. You’ll know him when you see him.” 

For as exhausted as Yozora was, he wasn’t done yet. He reached for the veil, the tear staring at him, unwilling to budge. Yozora grabbed it, dug his fingers in, ignored the burning pain that sparked up and along his body, tore it open, forced his way through. His body screamed. Something burned along his limbs. And still, he fought his way through the veil, crashing to the ground unceremoniously. His hand reached forward, grabbed an ankle. When he looked up, shadows obscured a face, but he saw the glint of eyes, the line of a mouth.

And… 

And.

_And._

Yozora stared up at the figure. And he…

Remembered.

Remembered?

What did he…

_He remembered._

“You.” Words crawled to the tip of his tongue. Rough and raw and harsh. The words were his own, but he felt as if they were words he’d never say, that would never cross his lips. 

_Not again._

The words rattled around his mind, but he didn’t know why. 

Slowly, he pushed himself to his hands and knees. “Where is she?”

The figure looked down at him as Yozora looked up. Then he blinked, and he saw Sora. Limp and unmoving. Someone he’d promised to protect. Someone he’d looked after. Someone… _someone…_

_Not again._

He blinked again, and he was grasping nothing. The figure was gone. Sora was gone. He was alone.

\- - -

Yozora wasn’t exactly sure how long he laid there, but eventually, he was roused by a familiar touch at his back, voices that pulled him from the brink. From the hand on his shoulder, a little spike of energy granted him the strength to open his eyes, to gaze blearily up at Aegis and Magia. Their eyes were wide and wild. They were alone.

Yozora scanned the area. Shattered and covered in dust and ash. Glass scattered from broken windows. Vehicles smashed. Pavement cracked. Buildings crumbled. Him, alone. The only survivor. 

“Are you all right?” Aegis was asking. 

Yozora didn’t know how to answer. Was he all right? Physically, perhaps. But in truth, he wasn’t all right. He was far from it. 

Nearby, something lay, stirred weakly from the wind that still whispered along the street. It was mostly black, but the lines of gold and silver chilled Yozora. Sora’s gauntlet. Slightly dusty, but otherwise intact. He reached for it, drew it to his body. It was still warm. 

Slowly, he sat up. Played with the straps of the gauntlet. Slung it around his burned wrist. Sora’s arm was slightly smaller than his own, so it didn’t quite fit, but there was enough for him to buckle it into place. When he flicked his wrist out, having seen that motion time and time again, the sword hummed to life, came at his call. Instead of grasping the hilt, he flicked his wrist again, the sword falling into place beside him, held in the air by the same magnetic forces that had called it to heed at his call. Its silver and gold patterns glowed even in the diluted light of the dust cloud. 

“Yozora?” Magia paused. “Where is Sora?” 

_Where is Sora?_

Slowly, Yozora stood. He stumbled around the street. Found his sword amongst some debris. His crossbow in a gutter. His grip was tight around them. They felt wrong in his hands. 

He turned to Aegis and Magia. The guard and the mage stared back, confusion and worry clear on their faces. They had reason to worry, Yozora knew, but he himself felt nothing. 

He turned away from them, began walking. 

“Hey!” Aegis called, his footsteps loud, stomping to catch up to Yozora. A strong hand pressed onto his shoulder, stopped him. “Where are you going?”

“To save Sora.” The answer came easily to his mouth, but both Aegis and Magia looked stunned. Yozora turned away. “Someone attacked us and stole Sora. I’m going to find them and save him.”

He walked on, aware that Aegis followed shortly behind him, that Magia hurried to catch up. 

“But, who was it?”

“I don’t know.”

“Why did they take Sora?”

“I don’t know.”

“What happened?!” Aegis’ voice roared over the mage’s. Anger and frustration. Perhaps at the situation. Perhaps at the realization of his own failings. They’d been too late. They hadn’t been there in time to help. 

Yozora turned to face them. What did he look like to them? Covered in dust, burned, bleeding. Halfway dead, completely exhausted. Running on borrowed strength. What had he become? 

“I don’t have any answers. All I know is that Sora was taken and I have to save him.”

He turned to keep going, though he wandered a pathless road, until another hand landed on his shoulder. Softer, though the grip was stern. When he turned, Magia stared grimly back at him. 

“Let us help. We won’t stand for Sora being taken like that.”

Aegis nodded. “Right. We’ll save him.” 

Yozora glanced between the two. Nodded. He knew he couldn’t do this on his own. Whatever power that figure had was immeasurable. The small bits he’d seen, what he had _felt._ It was unlike anything Yozora had ever known before. It was as if he were from another world.

_Another world._

While Yozora had always questioned Sora’s origin, he’d never once thought of him as not belonging there. Suddenly, that question roared to his mind. Whoever that man was, he wasn’t of this city. He wasn’t even of this world. And whatever he may be, he and Sora shared a kinship. They were of the same kind even if they were not of the same blood. Yozora, the magicians, even Aegis and Magia, had always wondered over Sora’s past. They hadn’t thought of it as something to fear. Now, he realized, it was much too late to consider that possibility.

However much Yozora regretted not being prepared for this, the situation had arisen. This was what they faced. They would have to find a way through it, find a way to save Sora and stop whoever this madman was. 

In the end, he just wanted Sora back. He wanted the boy safe and happy in the halls of Cathedra Veri. He wanted to spar with him one last time. To have dinner at the noodle shop. To watch him grow stronger, grow into his own person. 

His fists clenched at his side. 

He would do this. He would do whatever he had to for that future.

Slowly, his chin tilted upward. In the settling dust cloud, he could just barely see the diffused light of the yellow moon. The storm lingered overhead, the mocking shape of a heart outlined in the moonlight. The sight of it made something roll through him, something dark and sticky, something that lit his blood on fire and froze his nerves like ice. 

“I will save you, Sora,” Yozora spoke, barely a whisper, so soft he wondered if even Aegis and Magia could hear him.

“I promise, I will save you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well guys, we've come to the end of part one. First off, I'd like to thank you guys for reading. I hope you've enjoyed so far!
> 
> Now for the bad news: I have not finished writing part two yet. Strange thing, it's almost as if the world decided to blow itself up and I found less and less time to relax and sit down and write. Funny thing, isn't it? 
> 
> Anyway, I'm not going to just abandon it halfway through. Rest assured, I will be finishing this fic, even if it takes me a little longer than I anticipated. So, some good news: I'm over halfway done writing part two. There's not a ton left for me to do. So hopefully I'll have it to you as soon as I can.
> 
> Here's the plan for now, this fic will be going on at least a two-week hiatus while I figure out what I'm doing. It may be longer than that, but it'll at least be two weeks. A week before I post the first chapter of part two, I'll reveal the name of part two in a title card just like part one's, so when you see a new chapter post, you know it'll be just one more week before the new part starts. When I post the title of the new part, I'll also update the fic summary to give you a taste of what to expect from part two. Whenever I restart posting chapters again, they will continue to be uploaded on the normal schedule, Wednesdays. 
> 
> I'm sorry for not being ready to transition from part one to part two seamlessly, but I hope you understand and you stick around to see what's coming next. I can tell you that part two is going to be a bit different from part one, but that it's got some good moments that I'm looking forward to sharing with you all. There are still some tags yet unexplored, after all =P
> 
> In the meantime, tell me what you want to see in part two! Or share your favorite moments in part one! I'll be around answering comments as always, so say hello!
> 
> I will return soon! See you then!
> 
> Cheers~


	12. Part Two

**_Part II: When the Dawn Breaks_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys, we back.
> 
> Check out the new summary and see you next week.


	13. Wishes to Dreams

It had been a lonely, hard, long, _long_ year. 

While at first the grand halls and cavernous rooms of the Land of Departure had seemed far too overwhelming to ever feel familiar, time had withered away the sense of wonder and awe of this sacred place. It still held a bit of mystique, a bit of strange otherworldliness that sometimes surprised him when he let his guard down. But mostly, it felt hollow. Empty. Riven of purpose and meaning. With only a single, lonely keyblade wielder to wander its grounds, it felt wholly unnecessary, the entire structure liable to break apart and crumble to dust under the weight of its own insignificance. 

And yet, it had become a solace he hadn’t expected. Ripped away from everything he had once known, his island, his friend, his family, even his keyblade had felt far too large and cumbersome at times, the first few weeks in the Land of Departure had been particularly hard. He’d been alone. Waiting. Set aside with no goal, no purpose. Nobody to tell him everything was going to be okay. He’d begun sinking away, fading into dark thoughts and nightmares that gnawed at his resolve, made anger and fear nip once again at his heart. 

But the bells would ring every day and the sun would shine brightly in the halls he walked. This place never let him forget himself completely, if only in the way its existence provided balance.

Before leaving, Terra had explained this place was one of the few bastions of balance left in the worlds. It was important that balance be protected, so keyblade wielders would always have a safe place to return to at the end of their journeys, that they would be called to a safe place where they belonged. Its existence was proof of a stable universe. That alone helped keep him in check, to remind him that even if his world was falling apart, the worlds around him were at the most peace they had been in for years and years. 

That their sacrifices, no matter how great, hadn’t been in vain after all. 

That gave him more comfort than he could fathom, even as the days wore away on his nerves. There remained a missing piece, no matter what he did the soothe the ache of its absence. Sometimes, he would sneak out to the Destiny Islands for a visit, but even they felt empty without his friends at his side. 

The others helped. After all, the Land of Departure was, at its core, the home of all keyblade wielders. They couldn’t stay away for very long. So every now and then, he’d get a knock at the door and find Roxas, Axel, and Xion standing there, sometimes even Naminé as well. It wasn’t the same, but their presence helped. Axel refused to be anything but his usual self, despite the circumstances, and his bit of chaotic normal helped take his mind off everything. His memories of Xion had returned slowly, so it was good to confront her again, to make peace with what had happened between them. Xion had been all too gracious in welcoming him into her circle of friends. Unfortunately, things were slightly more sticky with Roxas. It seemed the former nobody didn’t quite know what to think of him, and he was too wrapped up in seeing Sora in Roxas to wade into the emotional quagmire that was their past. For now, they were friendly. That was enough.

Naminé was always a pleasure to see. She never pushed him. Never asked more from him than what he could give. She simply stood at his side and helped him move forward when he hesitated. He knew she was doing all she could to help find Sora, along with everyone else. But somehow, she was different than the others. He found himself clinging to her more and more as the months went on. For her part, she never once wavered in her support of him. For that, he could never thank her enough.

It was her voice that most often called him back from the edge. It was her voice he expected to be the one to tug him back toward the light. 

And so, he was slightly surprised that day when another voice unexpectedly called out to him.

“Riku.”

In an instant, he knew who had come to visit, didn’t have to turn to know who it was. He did so anyway, instinctually on guard. 

He’d been wandering the halls of the Land of Departure. Checking it over. Maybe just for something to do. It was the same ritual he’d been doing for months and months now. But since the news from Radiant Garden, he’d been performing this ritual time and time again. Letting his mind wander as he walked. Letting his hopes and wishes rattle in his bones. Never once had he been interrupted in his walking, nor had he expected anyone to be there, as nobody had announced themselves at the door. He thought he was alone. The figure standing on the opposite side of the hallway told him otherwise.

Sometimes it was still strange to see Roxas dressed in casual clothes. Some things had changed about him. A year had seen him grow a little taller, a little broader, trading his white jacket for one with more black, one that mirrored the clothes both Axel and Xion wore. Riku didn’t miss the stripes of red and black plaid patterning on the sleeves of the jacket, a small homage to his other half. Even with the new attire, Riku more times than not was surprised to see Roxas out of the Organization’s coat. In this instance, he was less surprised to see Roxas dressed in his casual clothes than he was to see Roxas at all, by himself. Roxas only ever visited with Axel and Xion. Never on his own. He and Riku were friendly. But they weren’t friends. There was a line drawn deep in the sand neither seemed eager to cross. And yet, here he was. 

Riku turned, trying to keep his posture relaxed, though he felt a bit of tension snaking across his shoulders. “Roxas. It’s good to see you.” Not a lie, but perhaps not the whole truth. “What brings you here?”

“Naminé sent me,” Roxas explained. 

“Is she here?” Riku tried to look over Roxas’s shoulder, but he saw no sign of the willowy girl, confirmed when Roxas shook his head.

“No. She’s in Radiant Garden with Kairi.” 

That wasn’t a surprise either, though the news didn’t settle well with Riku. “Something wrong?” 

“Opposite, actually.” Roxas grinned, a slight curl to his lip. It was both painful and relieving to see. If Riku looked close enough, he could see so much of Sora in Roxas. His smile was nearly the same. But his grin was different. Sora, full of cheer and goodwill, had a joyous grin, one that beckoned others to join him. Roxas’s grin was one of teeth and tilted eyebrows, a warning more than an invitation. “We’ve got news on Sora. We need you in Radiant Garden.” 

The words made Riku’s stomach twist, just a bit more. Ever since his last visit to Radiant Garden, when it had been revealed that his dreams could be the key to finding Sora, he’d been waiting for this news. Waiting for the others to finish their research and locate where Sora had gone. Waiting all too impatiently for the chance to finally reclaim what he had lost. 

“You could have called,” Riku said. 

The other keyblade wielder shook his head. “Nope. We’ve got a couple of things do here before we go. Don’t know when we’ll be back, after all.”

His words made Riku pause, if only for the briefest of moments. “What do you mean?”

That grin was shot over Roxas’s shoulder once more. “Why don’t you follow me and find out?” He walked on before Riku could say anything more. As much as he wanted answers, he wanted to find Sora more. And so, he fell into step behind Roxas without complaint. 

The other keyblade wielder didn’t spare him a glance as he did. “We need to lock the castle to anyone but keyblade wielders. Master Yen Sid said you knew how to do that even with the others gone.” 

“Yes,” Riku said, raising an eyebrow at his companion. 

To fully lock the world, they would need help from Aqua, who knew much more the intricacies of the castle than Riku could ever hope to understand. She, Terra, and Ventus had yet to return from the Realm of Darkness despite their long absence. Without them, all they could do was put up a defensive barrier around the castle that made it inaccessible to anyone without a keyblade. It was enough to protect the castle for a short while, but wouldn’t hold to prolonged attacks. Not that Riku expected anything of the sort. In the entire year, he’d yet to witness any hostile creature, heartless, nobody, or otherwise, attempt to breach the castle. The precaution was just that, a precaution. Riku wasn’t expecting trouble, though after all they had gone through, he appreciated the preparedness anyway. 

“Good. We also need to set up a corridor to the Realm of Darkness in the throne room.”

That made Riku stop. He understood locking the castle to protect it from potential attacks, but to invite the Realm of Darkness into the Land of Departure was asking for trouble. 

“That seems unwise,” he said, calling Roxas to pause. 

Roxas spared him only a glance. “The orders come from Master Yen Sid. He wants a way into the Land of Departure for Aqua, Terra, and Ven. After all, if something happens in there, there isn’t going to be anyone to really help them on this side.”

Riku narrowed his eyes. “What are you talking about?”

Again, Roxas grinned. “It’ll be better if someone else explains it. C’mon. We don’t want to keep Sora waiting anymore, do we?” 

For as many questions as Riku had, the knowledge that Sora was still waiting for them pulled him forward. 

Riku may have lived an entire year in the Land of Departure, but Roxas navigated the hallways as if he’d been the one living there for months on end. It was one of the mysteries of this place. The hallways felt familiar to all keyblade wielders, no matter how long or how short their visits may be. Roxas easily led the way to the throne room, the giant space echoing with the barrenness of its lonely existence. Riku avoided it when he could, though it held the communication gem that connected the castle with Master Yen Sid’s tower. Since the tower was always moving, it was the only sure way Riku could contact the master if he required assistance or had a question. So the room had been unavoidable. However, it had never lost its sense of emptiness. 

Stepping into it this time was different. He walked with a purpose and he walked with someone at his side, both driven toward the same goal. The space quickly filled with jittering energy, as if the castle was taking up the energy of its only guests.

Roxas stopped in the center of the room, gazed around. “All right,” he said. “I’m going to open a corridor. When I do, lock the entrance so nothing can get through.” 

Realizing the end goal, Riku reluctantly nodded. Roxas was the only keyblade wielder who hadn’t lost his ability to summon dark corridors. Perhaps it was his dual affinity to both light and dark that allowed this or some innate ability they didn’t understand, but they’d never really had a use for them before. Usually, they would open a portal or a waygate, a much safer way to travel. However, such gates were unstable, liable to fall apart. Corridors could be opened and remain open for long periods of time. If locked so a minimal amount of darkness seeped out of them, they could be quite safe. 

“This place is balanced, so the corridor shouldn’t spin out of control,” Roxas elaborated as Riku summoned his keyblade. “Even so, we should be careful with it.” 

Riku took a breath, gave Roxas a nod. Slowly, the boy lifted his hand, the space before him tilted, rotating, splitting open into a dark maw. Before much darkness could slip out, Riku raised his keyblade and shot a beam of light into it. The space recoiled from the light, spun tightly, snapped shut with the sound of a clicking lock. It remained a small ball of swirling darkness, contained and controlled, with no room for anything to slip from the Realm of Darkness. Still, Riku felt a bit uneasy lowering his keyblade. It felt as if he were defiling this sacred space, betraying the trust Terra had instilled in him. When Braveheart vanished from his fingertips, it felt like a reprimand, a slap in the face for what he had just done. 

Roxas was gazing at him curiously, his head tilted just slightly so. “You know,” he said, catching Riku’s attention, “it’ll be all right. Master Yen Sid wouldn’t have told us to do this unless he thought it was safe.”

Riku looked away. Nodded. “Right.” He said. “It’s just... you have to be so careful with the darkness. It’ll always seek a way to overwhelm you. And you can’t let that happen.”

Roxas considered his words carefully, seemed to come to some conclusion, but didn’t voice it. Instead, he turned to the thrones. “You’re going to have to talk me through how we’re going to do this.” 

It wasn’t a particularly difficult or arduous process to lock the castle away. Riku stood behind the far left throne while Roxas stood behind the far right. They summoned their keyblades, calling forth twin locks on the backs of the thrones, which they locked in unison. When that was done, light zipped through the sky beyond the windows, the castle ringing with the sound of something locking into place. The building shifted, seemed to settle, then still, and a peaceful quiet overcame everything. 

Roxas dismissed his keyblades, walked away with a purpose, never once glancing back. Riku paused, couldn’t help one last look around the room. This world had become his home, even if he sometimes resisted calling it that. The islands had been his home for a long, long time. But he’d always felt the need to go on, to go farther than the horizon. Once he had done that, he’d never quite felt settled, even after returning to the islands with his friends. In this place, he’d felt settled, even if he were aching for the things he missed. He could return to this place time and time again and never grow old of its intricate hallways and grand classrooms. He’d always felt welcome in his bed here. He’d never felt the need to leave and go on and on. That ache had disappeared, but the thought of leaving this place, for who knew how long, brought it all back. 

He hadn’t even stepped out the door and he was already feeling the effects of homesickness. 

But for as heavy as his heart was at the thought of leaving the Land of Departure, his heart had been much heavier for much longer with the absence of his friends. Over the months, they had become voids in his life, places that he couldn’t seem to fill, spots of hurt and anxiety that were always there, no matter where he turned. If there was any chance at bringing them both back to his side, then he would give anything at all. This fleeting pain of leaving home was one he could handle. Because in the end, he would return. He would return to these halls with his friends by his side. One day, it would happen.

Heart steeled, resolve steady, Riku hurried after Roxas, following him with his chin held high through the castle doors. A gummiship lay in the courtyard just beyond the stairs. In the sun, a shimmer of light marked the boundary where the castle was now locked away from the rest of the world. Should anyone come seeking it, they wouldn’t be able to see it unless they held a keyblade in their hand. It would be enough until they returned. Until they came back to fill the halls with a joy and laughter not seen there since Mater Eraqus had reigned with Terra, Aqua, and Ven at his side. That was the purpose of this place, and it was that purpose that Riku would return to it. No matter what it took.

With that promise in his heart, he stepped onto the gummiship eagerly. He did, however, pause upon seeing Roxas in the front seat. 

“I’ll fly,” Riku said. 

Roxas stopped, fingers hovering over the controls, then slowly turned over his shoulder and shot Riku a coy smile that made every nerve in his body shiver. Riku made sure to buckle in tightly. 

\- - -

They arrived in Radiant Garden in the evening. By now, the residents had long grown used to their lord’s strange visitors. Ansem the Wise was quite a private man. His friends, however, enjoyed landing giant ships in the middle of the garden square. 

Standing nearby to greet them was Xion and Axel. Both waved eagerly as Riku and Roxas departed the ship. 

“Welcome back!” Xion called. 

Axel opted for the more generic, “Hey, what’s up?” 

“You have news on Sora?” Was all Riku wanted to know. 

The trio of friends shared knowing glances, smiles touching each of their faces. “Sure do,” Axel nodded toward the castle looming over them. “The others can explain it better. It all kind of went over my head.”

“Zexion said you’ll understand it better than we did,” Roxas commented, while Xion rolled her eyes. 

_“Ienzo,”_ she reminded gently, Roxas ducking his head guiltily at the slip. 

“Right. Well, we better not keep them waiting.” 

The three turned toward the castle, Riku following behind them. As always, they slipped easily into conversation, Roxas eagerly explaining how he and Riku had worked together to lock away the Land of Departure. It didn’t escape Riku that Roxas’s demeanor changed when around his friends. He supposed it was to be expected, but it still frustrated him. Their relationship was a tricky one to navigate, but he hoped it wasn’t going to be like this for the rest of time. He liked Roxas. He liked Roxas quite a bit. But there was a history between them that made anything beyond idle chat uncomfortable. It was something he wanted to work on. But later. When they had Sora back. Once they did, Sora would know what to say to help the situation. He’d always been the bridge between people. He’d be able to reach over the gap between them, help them move forward. 

But first, they had to get him back.

Once they arrived at the castle, they were met by Aeleus and Dilan, who greeted both Riku and Roxas warmly and welcomed them into the castle. They took the familiar path back toward Ansem’s study, where the castle lord’s grand computer was stashed away. Standing in front of the computer was Ienzo, a contemplative look on his face, while Even and Ansem hovered over Kairi’s sleeping form nearby. 

Seeing Kairi after the year he’d spent at her bedside was always painful. Her endless sleep was strikingly familiar and he was all too aware of the ache in his heart when he looked at her and she never returned his gaze. Even with her right at his side, he was utterly alone. 

A hand touched his arm, Riku surprised to see Xion at his side. The girl smiled warmly. She looked a lot like Kairi in brief moments when Riku found his heart was at its weakest. Both she and Roxas were constant reminders to what he had lost. But Xion had always been warmer than Roxas. More willing to reach out to him, to see more than just the man who had worked to destroy their fleeting lives. Perhaps he didn’t deserve her kindness. But, in moments like these, he desperately needed it. She was always willing to help where she could.

“Ah!” Ienzo, finally broken from his trance, noticed the four had joined them. “Riku, it’s nice to see you.” 

“Hey. Roxas told me you had news on Sora?”

“Down to business I see,” Even wandered over with Ansem at his side. 

The old man smiled warmly at his guests, though his steps were hesitant. They had been for a long time. He didn’t seem to trust himself around the keyblade wielders, as if he expected some dark part of his heart to unleash against them and harm them again. Riku had once wondered if Ansem’s uncertain nature around them and due to him fearing retaliation for what he had done to them. In truth, retaliation may have made him feel better. The acceptance and kindness shown to him only unsettled him more, him waiting for the tension to break and for him to finally have to pay for what he’d done. Riku held no harsh feelings for the castle lord, but he knew Roxas sometimes looked at Ansem and sometimes saw DiZ, the man who had tormented him and ultimately taken everything away from him. Riku had played a role in that as well and perhaps that was where most of his aversion to the other keyblade wielder came from. Roxas still carried a lot of hurt, but he carried it well and he carried it knowing the others noticed his burden. 

Of everyone in that room, Ansem knew the pain Roxas carried. He knew his role in creating that pain and he understood that the keyblade wielder was wary at best and critical at worst. This sense of pain and distrust echoed throughout the others in Ansem’s eyes. Everywhere he looked, he saw someone he owed a great debt, a debt he currently had no hope of ever repaying. 

It was with this sense of apprehension and barely-concealed distrust that Ansem approached the keyblade wielders and Roxas took a step forward, always putting himself in front of his friends. A possessive look touched the keyblade wielder’s eyes, but it was suddenly gone when Axel ruffled his hair and Xion stepped beside him. Then, all the tension fell away and Roxas’s smile came easily and joyfully. 

Seeing the three together made a pit of jealousy twist in Riku’s stomach. He turned to Kairi, found her still and sleeping, and turned to his other side, found it empty and cold. 

“Thank you for coming so quickly, Riku,” Ansem said measuredly. “It’s good news we have for you, but I’m afraid it’s we’ve also found more questions than answers with it.” 

“Whatever it is, as long as it gets us closer to finding Sora, then I don’t care. Tell me.” 

Ansem, Even, and Iezno glanced amongst each other, each returning their gaze to Riku with different emotions, concern, intrigue, uncertainty. 

“We’ve analyzed your dreams, specifically the one of you in that city,” Ienzo walked to the computer, tapping out different commands to pull up screens of information, though most of it, Riku couldn’t understand. “What we’ve discovered is an overlaying image in both your dream and Kairi’s.”

“Kairi?” Riku glanced over his shoulder, but the girl slept on. He curled his fists, glared down at the computer. “What does it mean?”

“It’s not much, but it’s a common thread. Something we can trace between the two of you.” Ienzo looked to Even for support, the other scientist sighing greatly.

“If hearts are as connected as we suspect and this is a world neither you nor Kairi have been to, then it must be one Sora is familiar with. With the King, Donald, and Goofy already confirming this isn’t a world Sora has been to previously, then it must be a world he’s been to within the past year.”

“Is the King here?” Riku cast another glance around the room, but stopped when Ansem shook his head.

“He, Donald, and Goofy went into the Realm of Darkness to find Ventus, Terra, and Aqua.” 

At this, Riku narrowed his eyes. “Why? Is something wrong?”

“We’re going to need them back in the Realm of Light, at least until all of this is over,” Even said. 

Once again, Riku was glancing around the room, looking for answers, but nobody seemed willing to explain things to him. 

Until, a small voice called, “Maybe we should tell Riku exactly what we’ve found.”

The voice was familiar, a toll of calm above everything else. Over Ansem’s shoulder, he saw a girl in a white dress approaching, her smile less hesitant than it had once been. 

“Naminé,” Riku sighed, hurrying to her. “What’s going on?”

Naminé’s smile widened. “We think we’ve found a way to bring Sora back!” 

Riku’s heart shuddered, leaped, ached. Hope burned hot, painful and real. He hardly dare believe it. Even after all the hints and jokes, he hadn’t let himself wish so loudly before. In that moment, he felt a swelling in his throat, a plea that his greatest dream could actually be calling to him. That this was the end of his long, lonely year. 

Naminé held out her hand. “Here. Let me show you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Starting off part two with a little Riku inner demons. But, hey, what's new?


	14. Dreams to Reality

Beyond the computer room, there lay a small study, just a bit more than a closet, that was filled with fluttering paper. It was reminiscent of Naminé’s room in the Twilight Town manor only in that it was filled with paper and light. Otherwise, the walls were brown and the furniture was comfortable and there were art supplies stacked nearly to the ceiling. Paper curled toward them as Riku and Naminé moved through the space, Naminé lowering herself into a seat at a small table covered with half-finished drawings, blank paper, and pencils. Riku sat across from her, glancing around the room. Most of the images he saw were of things that had already happened, of memories from long ago, a few more recently. Some, however, he was less certain of. In particular, the drawing directly in front of Naminé seemed to depict a crude outline of himself, Xion, and Roxas in a blank landscape, only faint markings showing that Naminé was still working on it. 

A giggle from the girl brought Riku’s attention to her. “Something wrong?” He asked. 

Naminé shook her head, pushing the unfinished sketch toward Riku. “No, it’s just funny you notice this one first.” 

Riku scanned the page carefully, trying to pick out something from the few lines in the background, though he couldn’t tell much of anything. “That looks like me, Xion, and Roxas.”

“That’s because it is,” Naminé clasped her hands together. “It’s not a memory. Or at least, it’s not yet.” 

Riku frowned deeply. He was starting to get tired of all the secrecy, all the jokes taken at his expense. Just what was happening here? 

As if reading his thoughts straight from his face, Naminé held up her hand, asking for his patience. Riku shifted in his seat, glared down at the unfinished sketch. Unfinished, because it had yet to pass. Those lines could be anything. They could be anywhere. Whatever they were to become had yet been unwritten, undrawn, unseen. 

“Do you miss them?” Naminé’s voice didn’t surprise Riku, but her question did. He blinked at her, she misinterpreting his silence for confusion. “Sora and Kairi, I mean.”

“Yes, I do. Every day.” Riku leaned toward her, hungry for whatever answers she had. “What did the others find?”

“A connection,” Naminé placed her hand over her heart, smiling. “Or at least, as close to a connection as we could find.” 

“You’re talking about the city,” Riku said and the girl nodded. 

“Right. The one both you and Kairi are dreaming of, but neither of you know what it is. We think it’s the world Sora ended up in.” 

“Then we should go look for it!”

The girl shook her head. “We’ve been looking for more than a year and nobody recognizes it. If it were out there to find, we would have stumbled across it by now.”

She wasn’t wrong, but her words still stung. What were they supposed to do, then? Nothing wasn’t an option. This small, tiny thread, this one, last hope was all too much to simply let go of now. Riku refused to give up. He would use this thread to find Sora, to bring him _home_. It was all he wanted. 

Another giggle, though this one cut through Riku, hurt him with just how carefree Naminé sounded despite his pain. She offered him another smile. “Don’t give up. We have a plan.” 

“Then let’s hear it. I’m all ears.” 

Naminé tilted her head toward her sketches. “We think we can use yours and Kairi’s dreams to open a portal into the world where Sora is. Then, we can use that portal to find him and bring him home.” 

Riku’s heart leaped again, joy daring to surface. Was it really that simple? To just open a portal, step through, retrieve Sora, and bring him home? It sounded too perfect, too easy. There had to be something else. Plus, if that was all they had to do, why had Naminé sketched him with Xion and Roxas? 

“What else is there to this?” Riku asked warily. 

Despite his distrust, Naminé remained calm and cheerful. “Well, we aren’t exactly sure how it all will work or if it will work at all. When we found that you and Kairi were both having the same dream, we tried to look into it, but nothing was working. The connection wasn’t strong enough. However, in the past few days that connection’s gotten stronger, like something is calling out to us.” 

A jolt in his heart had Riku’s head snapping up. “Sora?”

Naminé shrugged. “It’s possible. Either way, while that connection is strong, we have to try, don’t we?”

“Yes,” Riku nodded. “So that’s why you brought me here. You need me to open the portal.”

“Not quite,” Naminé smiled at his confusion. “Kairi and I will be opening the portal. We’ll use Kairi’s dreams and my ability to manipulate memories, especially those connected with Sora, to open the portal. Since you also have had dreams of this world, we think you can bridge the gap and actually use the portal to reach whatever world Sora is in.” 

“Right,” Riku put a hand to his chin. “My heart’s connection with you, Sora, and Kairi makes me the perfect person to try reaching the world.”

“Right!” Naminé clasped her hands together. “We think we’ve got everything ready, as long as you’re feeling up to trying.” 

Riku frowned deeply, remembering what Roxas had said about potentially being away for a long time. He’d known about this. Xion, Axel, they had known too. Master Yen Sid. Ansem. Ienzo. Even. Everyone had known about this. For how long? How long had everyone kept Riku in the dark? How long had they been close to a breakthrough on reaching Sora? How long were they planning to leave him to wander the halls of the Land of Departure, wondering and worrying, while they planned and plotted? 

Why had they abandoned him?

“Uh oh,” Naminé’s voice pulled him from his thoughts. “I know that look. You’re thinking about something.”

Biting his lip, Riku studied her, wondering if it was even worth bringing it up. They had a way to potentially save Sora. Did it matter so much that they’d forgotten to tell Riku until this moment? Wouldn’t he say any sacrifice was worth making if it led to Sora being home again? Maybe not. But it still hurt Riku. 

_Now’s not the time._ Riku shook his head, banished the thoughts. _Later. Once Sora is back._ “You said we can try this soon?”

For a moment, Naminé stared at him. It was sometimes hard to know what she was thinking about, though Riku could tell she wasn’t convinced by what he had said. 

However, she simply said, “If you want to try, then we’re ready.” 

Simple, easy. Just like that, they were ready. He was the last piece in this. 

Riku paused, his thoughts threatening to spiral again, stopped only when he saw the fluttering of the paper around him, the memories that Naminé safeguarded, the connections she weaved. There were so many people she knew. So much she had interacted with. Naminé had become like a sage to the keyblade wielders. Knowing all and giving advice to any who asked. She was a central figure to all, and yet, she remained so quiet, relegated to the background. Riku sometimes wondered how she did it. How she simply sat and watched the world move around her. But she seemed content for it, content to observe and offer assistance when called. Nothing more, nothing less. As long as she was happy with her role, he supposed he couldn’t offer much else for her.

In this moment, he was only grateful for her help in finding Sora. 

He faced her, clenched his hands. His heart ached as it had for so long, but now that the moment was drawing nearer, the ache of longing turned into an ache for _action._

“I’m ready.”

Naminé considered him, then nodded. “There’s just one more thing we need to clear up first.” She took in a breath, a pause where everything was silent, save for the soft rustling of papers. “We don’t think it would be very smart for you to go off on your own. So we have two volunteers to go along with you.”

“Xion and Roxas,” Riku didn’t have to guess. “Why them?”

“They have the strongest connection to Sora besides yourself, Kairi, and Ventus. In all honesty, Ventus may have been a better choice, but we don’t know how long it will be until he, Aqua, and Terra return from the Realm of Darkness.”

“If the three of us leave, then who will watch the worlds?” Riku said. “There’s been peace for a year now, but who’s to say the darkness won’t take its chances once we’re all gone?” 

“Axel and Isa will keep an eye on things, along with the rest of us,” Naminé said, gesturing out to include all those around them, all the hearts Sora had touched. “And the King, Donald, and Goofy went into the Realm of Darkness to tell Ventus, Aqua, and Terra what’s happened. Once they find them, they’re going to use the corridor you and Roxas set up to return to the Realm of Light to help watch over things.” She smiled, intertwining her fingers. “Don’t worry about us, Riku. We’ll be fine here. Just focus on finding Sora. We’ll handle everything else.” 

They really had thought of everything. They really had been planning this for a while now. Riku tried not to clench his teeth in anger, but he felt the dark prickles at his heart. 

More than just his frustration at being told nothing, there came an uncertainty that he almost dare not voice. A thought that crept just at the back of his mind, something not in focus, but lingered just in the darkness. 

_What if I’m not good enough? What if I’m not ready?_

The words spiraled around his head, made him hesitate long enough that Naminé frowned. “What are you worried about, Riku?”

Riku didn’t want to say. He didn’t want to admit what was on his mind. But of all the people there, he knew she was the one he could trust the most. That she would understand, maybe more than anyone else could. 

“I… I don’t know if I’ll be good enough. To save Sora, I mean.”

It was like acid rolling off his tongue, but once he started speaking, the words demanded to be said. So he said them and he waited for Naminé’s response, his heart shuddering in his chest.

The girl considered him carefully, then shook her head. “Well, I think you are. And even if you aren’t, then Xion and Roxas will be there for you. After all, your friends will be strong when you need them most. At your weakest moment, they’ll be there.”

Riku didn’t want to admit that he couldn’t count himself a friend to either Xion or Roxas, that Roxas would probably laugh at the notion. But he did know that they would do anything they could to bring Sora back, even if it meant helping him. Maybe, just for this, it would be enough. 

Clenching his fist, he took in a breath, raised his chin. “Okay,” he said with a nod. “We can’t waste anymore time.” 

A smile graced Naminé’s face, lighting up the otherwise dreary room around them. “We’re counting on you three. We believe in you.”

Riku nodded. He would do anything to bring Sora, as would everyone else. Things would only feel right when Sora was by their side again. After all he had done for everyone else, it was only fair for them to give everything in return to see him back to where he belonged. 

For Riku, it was a bit different. He dreamed of himself, Sora, and Kairi back on their islands again, playing as they had so long ago. But he knew those days were just that. Dreams. Even if he brought Sora back, things would be different. Would they really feel at home on their islands? Riku had already found his heart had settled on the Land of Departure. So where would Kairi and Sora go? He hoped they would choose him or he would choose them. But he couldn’t know for certain.

But mostly, his heart yearned to be at Sora’s side. Just once more. One more time…

That might be enough.

Riku pressed a hand to his heart. “When can we get started?” 

Naminé smiled, stood. “Let’s go make sure everyone else is ready.” 

\- - -

They rejoined the others gathered around Ansem and Ienzo, who were staring down at the computer intently. Roxas was the first to look over his shoulder. His lips were pressed together, eyes slanted slightly. He met Riku’s gaze, nodded once. Riku returned the gesture, knowing if nothing else the keyblade wielder would stand at his side and fight to bring him home. Even if they weren’t necessarily friends, he wasn’t bitter enough to just let Riku die. He would fight just as hard as anyone else would to keep him safe. He trusted Roxas with his life. And Sora’s as well. 

The others noticed soon after Roxas, Xion hurrying to stand before Naminé and Riku. Her smile was soft, no longer hesitant. 

“Ready, Riku?” 

He nodded. “If you two are.” 

Xion turned a grin over her shoulder to Roxas, who joined them. “We’re ready. Naminé explained everything?”

“Naminé and Kairi are going to open a portal. I’m going to go through the portal and you two are going to come with me. Hopefully, we’ll end up in this city Kairi and I have been dreaming of and there we’ll find Sora. When we do, we’ll bring him home.”

Xion and Roxas shared a grin. “Sounds like you have the idea.” Roxas said. “You ready for another adventure?”

_If it means bringing Sora home, I’m ready for anything._ To Xion and Roxas, he nodded.

Seeing the exchange between the keyblade wielders, Ansem turned to Ienzo. “We should make our preparations.” 

As the three went over to the computer, Axel took their place in front of his friends. When he did, Riku took a polite step away, going over as if to watch Ienzo as he worked on the computer. In truth, he kept an ear to the conversation between the friends.

“Now, no disappearing on me again,” Axel said with a shake his head. “Just got you two back, after all. Would be a shame to lose you so soon.”

“Ahh, don’t worry about us. We’ll be back,” Roxas smiled and Xion laughed.

“And if we do get lost, we know you’ll make sure to bring us back, right?”

Axel rubbed the back of his head. “Right….” His smile quickly slipped away, revealing a sharp pain felt over the group. 

There had been a lot of pain shared between the three. Riku knew only too well. Seeing it resurface again, he felt the reluctance to part ways one more time. He knew just how much Xion and Roxas were sacrificing by leaving Axel and just how much Axel was sacrificing by letting them go. It wouldn’t be easy on any of them, he knew. But it was worth it, if they got to bring Sora home again. 

He knew that, but he still felt a twinge of guilt as he watched the three share a painful goodbye.

Movement at his elbow startled him, until he realized it was just Naminé. The girl frowned as she looked after the three, eyes searching them carefully. When she looked up at Riku, she offered a smile, though he knew it wasn’t genuine. She was just trying to cheer him up. While he appreciated it, he understood the gravity of this moment. 

This had to work. For everything they were about to sacrifice. For everything that was at stake. 

They had to bring Sora back. 

“Naminé,” Ienzo called, gentle, wary. “When you’re ready.” 

Naminé nodded, moved to stand near Kairi. Kairi remained unmoving in her chair, sleeping peacefully on. Iezno came to stand at Kairi’s other side as Naminé pressed her hands to her heart, closed her eyes. The machines around the room began to hum.

As Riku watched, he felt as two stood beside him, glanced to see Xion at his left and Roxas at his right. They nodded at him, confident, assured. He wished he could feel the same. 

“When the portal appears,” Ansem said without taking his eyes off his computer, “Xion and Roxas, take hold of Riku. Riku, use your keyblade to open the way. Hold tight and close your eyes until you reach the other side.” 

The three nodded, stepped a bit deeper into their stances. At his left, Riku heard Xion let out a shaky breath, but felt her resolve as Naminé reached a hand forward to touch Kairi.

A small light echoed between the girls. It started as a small spark, but as the computer whirred loudly and the energy in the room shifted, it caught into a beacon. That beacon manifested as a pink portal, a crystalline sun Riku knew would open the way.

“Now!” He heard someone shout, but he hardly needed the encouragement. 

With a flick of his wrist, his keyblade came at his call. He felt both Xion and Roxas grab onto him, Xion’s fingers shaking on his jacket, Roxas steady and stalwart. Somehow, their presence, their strength, flooded through him, granted him the resolve to press his keyblade forward and call the portal to open. 

In a blink, a beam of light connected them to the portal and the world fell away, dropping the three into a groundless void. 

A biting, gnawing, slicing wind whipped around them, a cyclone that ate at their limbs and pulled at their clothes and hair. It wasn’t like any other time Riku had traveled, not like going through dark corridors or waygates or even other portals. This was something different, something worse. The darkness here was deep, stuck. It delighted in the presence of the three keyblade wielders similarly to how a dog may be happy at new chew toys. Even with the protection his clothes gave him, Riku felt the darkness seeking to overwhelm him, seeking to overcome his light. 

Remembering what Ansem had said, Riku tried to close his eyes, but almost immediately, he felt Xion’s fingers slip away from him. He reached for her, grabbed a wrist, felt Roxas’s grip slipping when he moved. Somehow, he kept hold of Xion and his keyblade and he felt Roxas tighten his grip. The darkness surged around them. 

They were breaking apart.

_No!_ Riku grit his teeth. Dug his fingers in. _I can’t give up!_ He peered through one eye. Saw that Roxas had grabbed onto Xion and was holding her tightly. Xion’s lip was trembling slightly, but she held on. _We’re so close!_

He reached for the world he knew must be on the other side of this vast darkness, the world that neither he nor Kairi knew, but Sora did. Amongst the darkness, he thought he felt its presence. Just as with other worlds, it presented as a beacon, something that called out to him. 

Except, where other worlds called Riku to them, this one called for him to stay away. When Riku reached for it, it clawed him back. It was as if the world didn’t want to be found, didn’t want them to reach it. But they had to. They couldn’t survive in this darkness, not forever. There had to be a way in. Somehow! Any way in! 

The darkness was suffocating them. Drowning them. They were fading away.

_Sora…!_

A light pierced through the dark. Lifted them up. Carried them through the dark. 

\- - -

The air rushed from Riku’s lungs and his arm protested from the awkward angle he had landed. As he gasped for air, he heard a groan from Roxas beside him and Xion panting on his other side. There was nothing but darkness still, even when Riku blinked over and over again. 

_Have I gone blind?_

The thought had his heart racing, but when he raised his hand, he saw it and his arms, and the keyblade in his grip. 

Slowly, he sat up, searching for the other keyblade wielders. He only had to look over his shoulder to see Roxas slowly pushing himself up and Xion nearby shaking her head. 

“You two okay?” He asked. Both keyblade wielders groaned in response, but they were picking themselves up. 

Riku followed suit, pushing himself slowly to his hands and knees, then to his feet. A glance around revealed nothing but darkness at first, though the more he looked, the more he realized there was something in the darkness. Huge, looming things, things slumped over beside one another. Keeping an eye on where Xion and Roxas stood, Riku ventured a little farther into the dark, realizing that he was standing in the middle of a street, the decrepit remnants of a city decaying around him. He gazed around in shock, not understanding where and how he could be there. 

This wasn’t the city he had dreamed about. He had dreamed of a whole city, a city still sparkling in lights, rising with tall, proud buildings and lined by solid, dark streets. What lay around him could only be called a shadow of the city he had dreamed of. This simply wasn’t right.

What was more, as they lingered in this dark place, he felt it pulling at his nerves, fraying them at the edges. Just as the darkness of the portal had, the darkness of the city was trying to pull them apart. They couldn’t linger here for long, else they risked losing themselves. 

He was aware of Xion and Roxas joining him, of their looking around the city as well, recognizing what they could pick out of the dark. For several moments, the three of them stood and stared in confusion and horror.

Then, Roxas stepped forward.

“Riku, we should go.”

“Right,” Riku muttered, but the question remained, where? This city was fallen. Where could they possibly even start to look for Sora? And where could they find reprieve from the darkness slowly picking at their edges? 

Before he could think of an answer, a growl rising from the darkness stopped him. The three keyblade wielders paused, glared at the dark. Sought out signs of heartless rising from the ground. However, it wasn’t heartless they were faced with. 

A gasp from Xion alerted the other two, Riku and Roxas hefting their keyblades up to face their enemy, though both hesitated at the sight before them. Crawling atop a nearby truck, a thing of twisted limbs and gnashed teeth growled again at them, yellow eyes glaring them each down. 

Xion took a step beside the other two. “What is that?!”

“I don’t know.” Roxas suddenly turned to the left, Riku following his gaze to see another monster crawling from the shadow. A quick glance around told him they were quickly being surrounded.

The only clear path lay behind them, Riku quick to point it out. “There! Run!”

The other two didn’t need more prompting. Xion took the lead, with Riku and Roxas following quickly behind her. When one of the monsters leaped at them, Xion’s keyblade cut forward, sung as it knocked the monster away. 

“Keep going!” She urged, glancing back to make sure the boys were following her. They kept close at her back. 

Riku kept looking for a way away from the monsters and out of the darkness, but he saw them at every glance, every corner. They were closing in on them. Soon enough, they’d have to turn and fight. While the three of them were all excellent fighters, he didn’t know what to expect from these monsters, what they were or what they could do. There was no clear emblem on them anywhere, but they didn’t seem like heartless. They were something else. Something so much worse. On top of the monsters, the darkness was coalescing around them, as if sensing their distress. Within no time, it would suffocate them as well. Either way, they needed to get out, get away…!

“There!” Roxas called out, the other boy pointing forward. Cutting through the dark, a light had appeared on the horizon, growing brighter and brighter the closer they got. It seemed impossible, but when Riku reached for it, he felt the darkness shying away.

In the last bits of shadow, Riku pushed himself, broke through the barrier of light and dark, landed on the other side with a gasp and a cough and a persistent shake in his limbs. 

The change was immediate. He hadn’t even noticed the despair that had been clinging to him, but standing in the light, he felt weightless, warm, safe. He took in a huge breath, found his lungs finally clear. Even in the relief that washed over him as he took in that breath, it quickly vanished when he realized Xion and Roxas weren’t beside him. He spun, counted the seconds as his own heartbeats, readied to leap back into the darkness. The moment his body twitched forward, two shapes were spat out of the dark, stumbling into the light with huge gasps for air. Though shaken, both Xion and Roxas looked unhurt, Riku letting out a little sigh, even feeling a smile tug at his lips as the other keyblade wielders grinned up at him. 

“Hey! Where the hell did you three come from?”

The voice surprised Riku, more so when he saw several people running toward the. Each were wearing a uniform, making one seem nearly indistinguishable. Riku didn’t recognize any of them nor did he recognize the uniform. What he did recognize was the city rising behind them, the stretching towers and flashing lights. 

They’d made it. It was the city from his dream. He couldn’t help but to smile, to feel his heart beating triumphantly.

Until, that is, the voice called out to them again. 

“Throw down your weapons!” The order cut the smile from his lips. The people had surrounded them, hefting their own weapons toward the keyblade wielders. Xion and Roxas had taken defensive positions around Riku, both glancing for his direction.

Swallowing down a bit of fear, Riku took a step forward. “We don’t mean any harm. We’re just looking—” 

“I said throw down your weapons! Cooperate or we will have to shoot you!”

“Shoot us?” Riku couldn’t believe what he was hearing. What were these people thinking? He glanced to the other keyblade wielders, found their expressions narrowed and untrusting. 

“Riku, step back,” Xion warned. As much as Riku didn’t want to, he knew they had to stay together, even through whatever was happening.

“I have an idea,” Roxas muttered. “When I give the signal, run.”

“What’s the signal?” Riku whispered, hefting his keyblade as the people around them raised their weapons. 

“You’ll know it.”

The lack of information didn’t sit well with Riku, but he focused his attention on those around them, trying to search for a clue as to why they were being so hostile. 

“Last chance! Throw down your weapon!”

One of the soldiers stepped a little too close, Xion immediately threatening them with her keyblade. When she did, the soldier shot, a laser cutting toward her. Without thinking, Riku splayed his fingers, called forward magic with a shout. A barrier sparked to life around them, the shot bouncing harmlessly away. 

The soldiers around them all gave a gasp, took a step back in shock. As soon as they did, Roxas put this keyblades together, closed his eyes, then thrust them out, beams of light and dark cutting a circle around the keyblade wielders. 

While the soldiers stumbled back again, Roxas shouted, “Now!” and the three took the opportunity to sprint between the dazed soldiers. 

“Hey wait!” Someone shouted, but too late, as the three rounded a corner and raced into an alleyway, rushing deeper into the city without a care to where they may be going.

This was their first introduction to the city Riku and Kairi had been dreaming about for months. He could only hope this event wasn’t going to set the tone for the rest of their quest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone together in one happy city! Or something like that =P
> 
> I've been told I should be on social media more and actually interact with people or something crazy like that, so I guess I'm on Twitter. Come say hi if you want. (@EmpressArianda)


	15. Reality to Darkness

They ran until they couldn’t run anymore, then they stumbled to a stop in a tiny, squished alleyway where two of them couldn’t stand across from one another. As soon as they stopped, they each leaned over, gasping for breath, checking over their shoulders for anyone who may have followed them. 

“Are you… two… okay?” Riku managed to get out.

Roxas nodded, glanced to Xion, who gave a tired grin. 

“That was… exciting!” She laughed. Roxas only shook his head, allowed a slight roll of his eyes. 

He was the first to recover, peering out of the alley they had dashed into. “I think we got away.” Everyone heaved a sigh of relief between gasps for air. “But we should be careful.” 

It was something that didn’t need to be said, although hearing the words seemed to shift something. What had Riku been expecting when arriving in the world? To just show up, find Sora, and leave? Had he really been that naïve to think it would be that simple?

No matter what though, even if it was going to be harder than they had thought, they were still there to find Sora and bring him home. It was enough of a reason to keep going. 

“You know,” Xion muttered after she’d caught her breath. “This world seems a bit more… dangerous than a lot of the worlds even the Organization sent us to.”

Roxas nodded. “You’re right. Something seems off about this place.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Riku took a step forward to peer over Roxas to the street beyond the alley. “We won’t be here long. Just until we find Sora.”

“And, how exactly, do you plan on doing that?” 

As much as Riku didn’t appreciate Roxas’s tone, he supposed it was a valid question. “We follow our hearts. They’ll lead us to Sora.”

“We’ve been trying that for a year and it hasn’t really been working all that much,” Roxas sighed, pushed away from Riku. “This city must be huge; we can’t just start wandering around. We need a plan for now. If something comes up and our hearts reach Sora, then we can follow them. Until then, we need to be focused and purposeful.” 

“What’s your suggestion, then?” Riku tried not to growl, but the words came out sharper than he’d intended. 

If Roxas noticed, he gave no indication of it. “We find some people who don’t immediately attack us and we find out more about the city. Not only will they have more information on this world, but Sora’s not easy to miss. If we’re lucky, he’s spent the last year here making a name for himself and someone will be able to lead us to him.” 

Riku hated to admit it wasn’t a bad idea, though he paused when Xion made a humming noise.

“Yeah, but how do we know who will and won’t attack us?” She had her fingers intertwined, worrying her hands as she spoke. “And why did they attack us in the first place? We weren’t doing anything.”

Roxas glanced to Riku as if he would have an answer, but once again, he didn’t. There was no obvious answer he could think of and he didn’t know enough of this world to find an answer there. As Riku struggled with Xion’s question, Roxas simply shrugged. “It might be the way this world works. It’s got a darkness to it. We’ve already seen that. So maybe this is just how it is.” 

That didn’t feel right, but Riku didn’t have another answer that made more sense. In either case, they couldn’t stand around wondering over how and why the world worked as it did. He hadn’t ever given much thought to it before, save for places like the Land of Departure. But it was a curious question. Why did the worlds act as they did? What drove their nature and the nature of those that inhabited them? What made them different, what made them similar? What made a world what it was? 

All things to ponder later, when they weren’t on a mission. 

Riku tilted his head, a small conciliation, to Roxas. “All right. We’ll try your suggestion, Roxas. But we have to be careful. Obviously not everyone here will be happy to see us.”

Both Xion and Roxas nodded. “Lead the way, Riku!” Xion tried to smile, to defuse some of the tension between the boys. A smile wasn’t going to be enough, but it did give Riku permission to turn away from Roxas and start forward without seeming rude. 

When they stepped out of the alley, they stepped carefully, looking for signs of the men who had shot at them. The more Riku thought about it, the more he thought they must have been soldiers from some sort of organized group. It explained why they had all been dressed similarly, why they had commanded respect and obedience from the three keyblade wielders without any pretense. So there would no doubt be more of them elsewhere. It was impossible to say whether any of the other soldiers they may run into would recognize them and try to stop them, but they would have to be careful. They didn’t have time to be accosted by any sort of organized force. However, it seemed a big enough city that they should be able to avoid most interactions with the soldiers.

Besides, all this was only for a little while. Only until they found Sora. Then, they’d be gone. 

They just had to make sure to watch each other’s backs. Just as before, Xion and Roxas took position at his sides, kept watch at his back. AS they did, Riku felt the sting of their presence, remembered just how poorly they fit into the voids that lingered beside him and how poorly he fit into the void between them. They were a broken group, together only in physical proximity. 

But they had a goal. They had a reason to move forward.

So they did. 

_Sora, where are you?_

\- - -

A few hours later, they ran into their next problem. 

Riku hadn’t even noticed the time passing, until he heard a groan from behind him, turning to see Xion pressing a hang guiltily over her stomach. She smiled apologetically, but Roxas frowned, glancing to Riku. As much as Riku didn’t like the idea of stopping to eat, he knew it wasn’t a good idea to keep going and going and going. If the time came when they needed to fight, then they had to be at their top strength. Going hungry wouldn’t help anyone.

So, he glanced up and down the street. “We should find a place to rest for a moment.”

They didn’t have to look long to stumble their way into a restaurant. Luckily, they didn’t particularly stand out among the patrons, though Riku had come to realize that keyblade wielders, no matter where they were, slotted easily into their surroundings. Sora was the only one who ever seemed to stand out amongst the crowd, but that was less because of his status as a keyblade wielder and more because he was, well, Sora. 

Nobody paid the three any mind as they slipped into seats at the front of the café, near a window. Riku kept a sharp eye out for any more soldiers, but the only people he ever saw passing on the street were normal, everyday people. He noticed Xion looking as well and took the chance to glance around the café. It was quaint, quiet. A place he may have liked to lounge in and enjoy sometime. Circumstances prevented him from leaning back and relaxing into the setting. Roxas had been right, after all. They had a lot of searching to do and a huge city to cover. There was no time to truly rest. 

“The people here,” Xion said suddenly, drawing both Riku’s and Roxas’s attention. She was still gazing out the window, biting at her lip. “They all look so sad.”

_Sad?_ Riku turned, looked for what he may not have noticed before. How everyone avoided everyone else’s eyes. How when they did look, it was with quick, frightened glances, with gazes that seemed to be searching for something before quickly retreating to safely staring at the ground. Mothers kept children close to their side. Men dared not linger alone. An air of uneasiness rested over the seemingly normal rustle of the crowd. 

Roxas tapped the table, rhythmless. “This world does feel a bit off.” 

Riku frowned at his assessment, not having gotten the same feeling. The world felt a bit different, but all worlds felt a bit strange when first acclimating oneself. 

“Hmm,” Xion intertwined her fingers, placed them on the table before her, “it is a bit strange, isn’t it?”

“What is?” Riku asked, though he was only half paying attention. He kept looking at each and every person who passed by the window. Although he knew it wasn’t going to be that simple, he looked for Sora in every single face. 

“That this is the world Sora ended up in,” Xion said. “Why this world? What’s special about it?” Riku saw her glance to Roxas, saw the slight downturn at the corner of his lip. “Why haven’t we been able to reach it until now?”

It was a valid question. Riku pondered this world for several moments, but they knew so little about it that it wasn’t worth spending too much time thinking about it. Maybe answers would come to them eventually, but he didn’t see how they would help them find Sora, so he put it from his mind as a server came to their table to ask for their order.

They ate a light lunch and Roxas indulged in a cup of coffee. “For a blossoming headache,” he said with a grouchy glance toward Riku. Riku ignored him, turned again to searching for Sora in the crowd. 

The server returned to their table once they were nearly finished to ask if they needed anything else. Roxas was just asking for a second cup of coffee when Riku saw them. Soldiers. Coming down the street. 

He pushed himself flush against the seat, cleared his throat urgently, catching the other keyblade wielders’ attention. “No, I think that’s it. Here,” he reached into his pocket and drew out some munny. “Is this enough?”

The server palmed the munny, stared blankly down at it. She offered it back to him. “Umm… sorry. What is this?”

For a moment, Riku didn’t really know what to say. In all the worlds he’d ever been to, munny had always been an accepted currency. He’d never been turned away once with it. He glanced toward Xion and Roxas but their expressions betrayed the same confusion as he felt. When he looked out the window, he saw the soldiers, still coming down the street. Seemingly coming right for the café.

Riku’s heart did a bit of a flip as he turned back to the server, who was patiently extending her hand toward him, smiling politely but clearly just as confused as they were. His mind raced for an excuse, for a way to explain what munny was, a way for them to get out of that café as quickly as possible. 

The bell over the café door rung out sharply, harshly, a warning for them as much as it was the for wait staff.

“Hey,” a powerful voice shook the café, the three keyblade wielders instantly tense. Standing in the doorway, a soldier hefted a rifle over his shoulder, up into the air. “This area has been ordered for evacuation! Revolutionaries are said to be mobilizing nearby. Please get up in an orderly fashion and follow the instructions of the militia to safety.”

A mumble of unease swept through the café, but people stood, did as they were told. Even the server didn’t give Riku, Xion, and Roxas one more glance, joining the crowd of murmuring people as they filed from the café. Riku took the opportunity to glance to Xion and Roxas, saw both of them cautiously curious, watching as people moved around them. 

When someone came to a stop right at their table, they each tensed. The soldier glanced between them once, twice, and gestured with his rifle. “You three need to get out of here. It’s not safe.”

Neither Riku nor Roxas moved. Out of the corner of his eye, Riku swore he saw Roxas’s fingers flinch, spread wide, as if he were reaching for his keyblade. Xion suddenly wrapped herself tightly around his arm, urging him forward. “Right!” She said quickly. “We’re going now.” 

The sound of her voice broke like a spell over them. Riku and Roxas followed her lead out of the café, though both kept an eye on the soldiers. None of them gave them a second glance, merely gestured them out of the café and down the street along with everyone else. 

They joined the shuffle of the crowd, slipping into anonymity quite easily. Riku studied the city around them, but nothing stood out. More soldiers were guiding them down the street, but he didn’t see any signs of danger anywhere. What were the “revolutionaries” the solider had mentioned? Maybe the monsters they had faced in the darkness? But that didn’t feel right. 

_It’s not our problem._ He grit his teeth, turned to face forward. In all the worlds he had visited, he often came and helped in some small measure to right the balance of the world. Even when he had visited a world while looking for the Organization or while on missions, he’d always found himself resetting the scales of light and dark. It was, admittedly, strange that they were actively moving away from whatever was plaguing this world, turning their back on the troubles of this world. Yes, it seemed something bad was happening. But in this moment, it didn’t concern them. 

Even knowing that, he still felt the twitch in his body to turn, to face whatever darkness was encroaching on this city, to seek it out and bring light to these scared and hurting people. He knew Xion and Roxas must feel it as well, but they kept their gazes forward, following the crowd without complaint. Taking to their example, Riku took in a breath, faced the path ahead, then startled at the loud explosion that rocked the city.  
People screamed. A soldier nearby shouted for them to run. Many people did. 

The keyblade wielders didn’t. 

“Hey!” Roxas’s shout drew Riku’s attention to a nearby alley. The soldiers were converging nearby, on the street and on the crowd of people suddenly fleeing, though from what Riku wasn’t exactly sure. Still, if they had a chance to get away from the commotion, they had to take it. So he followed Roxas without a second thought, checking to make sure Xion was with them. They vanished out of the crowd, off the street, and into the alleyway, dodging around corners and pausing only once when another explosion went off not too far away.

The pull to seek out the source of the disruption burned in Riku’s blood. He paused, turned toward the sound, aware of Xion and Roxas doing the same, guided by some instinct maybe all keyblade wielders shared.

But, if that was the case…

Then Sora would feel it to. 

He would be drawn to the fight, to the conflict that was plaguing this city, just as much as they were.

_Of course._ Riku could hit himself for being so dense. They had been trying to run away from the very thing that would draw Sora right to them. After all, Sora never backed down from a fight. If someone was in trouble, he would be right in the middle of the fray, trying to help them. By avoiding the darkness in this city, they would simply be running away from the most likely place that Sora was to appear.

“C’mon!” He ran down the alley, right toward the source of the noise. Behind him, both Xion and Roxas stammered in surprise, Xion calling his name before the two quickly followed after him. They hadn’t quite realized it yet, but they would. They’d understand this was the right place for them to run to.

Though the city’s tiny, maze-like alleyways were utterly unfamiliar to Riku, he didn’t need to know where he was going. He simply followed the sounds of explosions and the shouting that soon echoed between the buildings. Along with the shouts came the familiar sounds of fighting, the ricochet of projectiles off the cityscape, the clash of weapons against one another, the shouts and yells of people at the center of a conflict. As they grew closer to the fight, Riku slowed, pausing just at the turn of the alleyway. Xion and Roxas stayed right at his side, sparks of light and dark arcing along Roxas’s fingers as he prepared to enter the fray. Riku, however, stayed cautious, peered around the last corner of the alley to see what was happening.

He noticed first the large gathering of soldiers, their weapons trained and hot, firing indiscriminately forward. They were mindless in their actions, as if they were simply moving on instinct, without a higher purpose. Across from them, Riku saw a few flickers as whatever the soldiers were facing ducked in and out of protection. He saw they were people, seemingly normal people, each of them in ragged clothes with cobbled-together weapons. Against the organized force that was the soldiers, it was clear they didn’t stand a chance. 

But that wasn’t what caught Riku’s attention most. What gave him pause was the wisps of darkness that trailed lazily along the soldiers, that seemed to grow thicker with each attack launched at those they faced. Riku had been to enough worlds, had faced the darkness long enough, to know what that meant. 

“What’s happening?” Xion asked urgently. 

Riku shook his head. “Don’t know. But those soldiers are infected with darkness.”

“Do we take them out?” Roxas flexed his fingers and his keyblades appeared readily. He didn’t seem eager to fight, but Riku did recognize the flicker of unease that crossed his eyes when he glanced at Xion. 

Still, he shook his head. “Not yet.” 

“Then what do we do?”

Xion put a hand to her chin, smiled at them, though how she could smile so easily mystified Riku. “Well, what would Sora do?”

“Something reckless.” Roxas said without hesitation.

Although he wasn’t wrong, Riku knew the better answer, “He’d try to stop them.”

“Right!” Xion nodded. “So let’s go see what we can do.” 

Roxas didn’t even give her a sarcastic pause. “That’s a terrible idea.”

“Was Sora ever really known for his brilliant ideas?”

“Right. So why are we doing what he would do?”

“Because we’ll never find him if we don’t start thinking like him!” Xion did at least summon her keyblade before rushing past Riku toward the mouth of the alley. Roxas followed quickly after her, Riku not missing the slight roll in his eyes as he did. Not wanting to leave them to fend for themselves, he summoned Braveheart, hurried to catch up. 

Xion emerged from the alley with a shout, “Wait! Stop! What’s going on here?” 

Two of the soldiers turned over their shoulders, eyed them warily. “More Revolutionaries,” one said, both lifting their weapons toward them. 

“No, wait! We don’t mean any harm!” Xion showed her free hand, tried to smile at them. “We just want to talk, to find out what’s happening.” 

“Lady, get out of here!” Someone shouted from the other side of the battle. 

“Xion,” Roxas warned, hefting his keyblades. Riku stood at his side, felt magic at his fingertips. Both rushed forward, ready to defend their friend, sensing that danger was too imminent to be stopped. 

They weren’t, then, surprised when the soldiers tightened their grips on the rifles and shot toward Xion. What was perhaps a bit more surprising was Xion facing the attack unflinchingly, her keyblade singing as it whipped through the air, blocking their attacks deftly and solidly. When the bullets died away, Xion still dug in her heels, stood her ground proudly. Riku blinked, impressed, didn’t miss the smirk of approval on Roxas’s face. 

Xion kept her keyblade raised. “I said, we don’t want to fight. Please, just stop!” 

But the soldiers took several steps forward. Their collective darkness was deepening. Some of the other soldiers were turning toward the keyblade wielders now, their weapons ready. Riku stepped between Xion and Roxas, a barrier spell at his fingertips, right at his tongue, ready should the soldiers fire upon them.

“Plan B?” Roxas called as Xion sunk into a fighter’s stance. 

“What’s Plan B?” She didn’t sound scared. 

Riku could almost _hear_ the toothy smirk overtake Roxas’s face. “We fight!”

It seemed the obvious solution, but not one Riku was eager to face. Xion’s plan hadn’t worked. But he wasn’t exactly sure Roxas’s would fair any different. 

Before any of them could answer, the darkness seemed to still, to coalesce around the soldiers. It dripped like rain down upon them, clung to their skin, melted into their armor and weapons. For as much as Riku had seen of the dark, he’d never quite seen what happened next. As the darkness covered the soldiers, their bodies began to twist, to morph into hideous forms, with gnashing teeth and long claws. Alarm made Xion take a step back and Roxas narrow his eyes, neither of them moving to attack. 

It was Riku who, realizing it was far too late for anything else, let his barrier fade away, and charged forward with Braveheart. 

His keyblade felt heavy and impactful as it struck across the first soldier’s chest, the soldier letting out a shriek that was not human, not anymore. Behind him, beams of light and dark shot outward and Roxas appeared suddenly in the crossing of the two, in a blaze so bright that several of the soldiers turned away with a hiss. A pillar of ice shot through the gathered soldiers, Xion just behind them, muttering her spells. 

“Charge!” The call came from the opposite side of the battle, as the people rushed out of their hiding place to join the fight against the soldiers. Their style was messy and clumsy, but Riku welcomed the distraction as the soldiers split their attention between the keyblade wielders and their original opponents. 

It felt like a blink. Or maybe it felt like a lifetime. A battle was strange like that. Even as his body was focused on the opponent in front of him, in his mind, Riku could still remember the burn of his body, the ache in his limbs from another fight not so long ago. How in a graveyard of broken keys he’d faced down his own reflection, Ansem, and Xigbar. How it had felt like he’d been in that fight for a lifetime, struggling just to hold them off, before Sora appeared, a light so strong that he cut through all the doubt that had been crowding into Riku’s heart. And once he had arrived, it seemed only a blink, a single strike of their keyblades, and one by one their opponents fell, until it was just Sora standing at his side, smiling brightly, seemingly without a care in the world.

Somehow, this was much the same. 

It started with him counting his breaths, with him focused on Xion and Roxas and keeping their backs as much as he knew they were keeping his. Then, as they were reinforced by the ragged band of outlaws, the battle spiraled into a chaos that had time spinning out of control, had Riku leaping around the battlefield, now at Xion’s back, now guarding two people he’d never met before in his life, then taking down two soldiers on his own only for one to be shot down from someone across the field.

And then, with a final, sharp cry from Roxas, the last soldier fell, the darkness faded, and it was over.

For a moment, Riku surveyed the damage. Neither Xion nor Roxas looked hurt. In fact, Xion was looking quite proud of herself and Roxas glanced around, making sure each of their enemies was down for the count. He also looked for signs of Sora, though he knew he would have noticed if Sora had entered the fight. No such luck.

And only then, when someone called out to them, did Riku turn to face their backup.

“That was pretty slick! Where’d you three learn to do that?”

A young man not much older than they were raised a hand to them, a grateful smile on his face. At his back, half a dozen others were gathering themselves up again, checking on each other, murmuring quietly, glancing curiously at the keyblade wielders.

The young man who had greeted him was smiling widely, but as he stepped closer to Riku, his smile faded quickly. He studied Riku, his lips quirked slightly, an eyebrow tilted upward. “Hey, that’s weird. You look just like…,” he bit his lip, glanced to his companions, who were watching him closely. Then, just like that, he was smiling again, raising his hand to point at Braveheart. “Never mind. Fancy weapon you got there. Who built your tech?”

“Er,” Riku glanced at his keyblade. “Let’s say it’s a… custom build. Who are you?”

The young man cocked a grin as Xion and Roxas came to stand at Riku’s side. “Name’s Nix. You must be sympathetic to the cause!”

Riku cast a glance to Xion and Roxas, neither of whom looked any less confused than he was. “Uh, sorry, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

There came a sudden lull to the conversation as nearly everyone turned to appraise him, to narrow their eyes and or raise their eyebrow curiously. Riku bit his lip, realizing he may have said something really quite wrong, when Nix threw back his head in laughter. The sound of his laughter set the others a bit more at ease, though they remained curious as they examined the three, taking careful steps a bit closer.

When Nix had gathered himself, he wiped a finger under his eye. “Wow! Have to say, that’s a new one. Well, let me be the first to introduce ourselves.” He thumbed his chest. “We’re the Revolutionaries. We’re seeking a change to this city. The militia’s not going to stop the darkness, so we will.”

Riku felt his heart shudder, saw Xion and Roxas share excited grins. People who were fighting the darkness? 

Perfect. 

“My name’s Riku. This is Xion and Roxas,” he gestured to each of the keyblade wielders at their names. “You could say we’re… kinda new to these parts. Would you mind filling us in on what’s happening?”

Nix grinned between them, nodded. “Course. We should get off the streets though. Before more militia show up.” He nodded toward his companions, who turned and fled down a nearby alley without another word. Nix winked at them before following.

Riku again looked to Xion and Roxas. None of them had to say anything. They knew that if Sora was anywhere to be found, it would be fighting the darkness. If the Revolutionaries really were fighting whatever was taking over this city, then they would be the first ones to know who and where Sora was. 

It was without hesitation that the three ran after Nix and the Revolutionaries, assured that this was the exact right thing they needed to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are getting into the action now, guys. Going to be a fun time =P


	16. Darkness to Sleep

They had to travel quite a ways into the city, always taking back alleys and shadowed streets. Nix made sure they kept up, though it was never a worry that the keyblade wielders would fall behind. It was too important for them to learn more about the darkness, the city, and the Revolutionaries to just let it all slip away. 

The farther they traveled, the more Riku took care to notice their surroundings. The city towering above them on the surface looked normal, typical, so much like other worlds he’d been to before. But if he looked more closely, he saw broken windows, cracked concrete, abandoned vehicles. It was subtle, but a closer inspection told Riku that this world was fraying at the edges. He took careful note, but ultimately turned his focus back to Nix. 

The Revolutionaries led them into a dirty, seemingly abandoned part of the city, where they were quickly waved into a dilapidated building. Inside, they were greeted by two more Revolutionaries wielding rifles similar to those the soldiers used. The guards blinked in confusion at the keyblade wielders, but when Nix appeared, they gave a bit of a roll of the eye, as if strangers showing up on Nix’s heels was just another annoyance they had come to expect. 

“This way!” Nix gestured them farther into the building, giving only a quick wave to the guards before parading off. The other Revolutionaries they had been traveling with relaxed upon entering the building, shrugging off armor and letting their weapons lower. This, it seemed, was their safe place. A glance around told Riku that it was quite a poor safe place to have and he wondered exactly what dire straits they must be in for _this_ to be where they felt most comfortable.

Not for the first time, he yearned for the halls of the Land of Departure, ached to let his feet follow the road that would lead back to the castle he had come to know so well. But that would come, in time. He’d return, and he’d bring back everyone with him. 

For now, he banished the thought, checked to make sure Xion and Roxas were still at his side. The two were glancing around the molding, rotten building with equal parts curiosity and sorrow.

Nix led them down a hallway and opened a door for them, gesturing them inside with a wide grin on his face. Riku went in first, taking stock of everything within. A woman was leaned back in a chair, watching them, a narrowing of her eyes the only indication of what she thought. She was wrapped in a tattered dress and had string hanging from her neck and limbs as if she were draped in shimmering jewels and gold. When Nix followed in after the keyblade wielders, she stood, holding herself with all the poise as if she were dripping with luxury. 

Even as the others filed into the room to stand before her, her eyes never strayed too far from Riku.

“Do I even want to know?” She asked as Nix waltzed into the room. 

Nix grinned, moved to her side and plant a kiss on her temple. “Ma, meet Riku, Xion, and Roxas.” He pointed to the keyblade wielders as he spoke, the woman turning a patient gaze to each of them before she inevitably turned back to Riku. “They’re sympathizers who saved us from a group of soldiers.” 

The woman’s eyes sharpened and she spun on Nix. “You were attacked by soldiers?”

Immediately, Nix blinked, tried to smile, managed only a forced grin, “Well, you see, we didn’t mean to run into them. They just kind of appeared.” 

“And why were you out in the city in the first place?” 

Nix’s grin twitched at the corner. “Uhhh….”

The woman leaned back, slowly knit her fingers together. 

A bit of color left Nix’s face. “We, uh, might have planted some presents for the militia to find later. But, uh, think we did it wrong.” The woman narrowed her eyes, Nix squirming uncomfortably as she did. “They went off a little early, brought the militia right to us. We couldn’t get away in time.” 

The woman considered him, a frown pulling at her lips. There was a momentary pause where she regarded Nix carefully, unhappily. Then, she sucked her cheeks in, slowly rose from her chair, and turned to the keyblade wielders. “I guess this means I owe you thanks for saving Nix. My son may be a fool, but he’s very precious to me.” She gave a bow. “Thank you.”

Riku quickly urged her up. “It was nothing. We were happy to help.”

The woman gazed at him up and down, nodded. “My name is Jiyura. I help organize this band of Revolutionaries. Although, I suppose we are only Revolutionaries in name now.” Although Riku didn’t quite understand her words, a glance at Nix’s sullen expression told him just how heavy they were, as if they had a gravity all their own. “Tell me, is there something we can give in thanks for what you have done for us today?”

Riku was already shaking his head, about to say once again it had been their pleasure to help, when Roxas stepped forward. “Actually, we have a couple of questions we were hoping you might be able to answer.” 

At his request, Jiyura raised her chin, appraising him silently. Slowly, she lowered herself back onto the chair, nodded for him to continue. 

Roxas flexed his fingers, as if reaching for his keyblade, though no spark lit in his palm. “We’re actually looking for someone. Maybe you’ve seen him around?”

“It’s possible, though we would only know for certain if he was a Revolutionary.” 

Riku knew it wasn’t likely Sora had joined up with these Revolutionaries, but he may have passed by them on more than one occasion. He didn’t voice this as Roxas told the two who they were looking for, describing Sora in as much detail as he could. The longer he spoke, the more Jiyura’s lips turned down slightly, though she listened patiently. 

When he was finished, she glanced to Nix, who shook his head. “I’m afraid I don’t know anyone by that description. However we’re more than happy to circulate it to the others to see if he sounds familiar to anyone else.”

“That would be very helpful,” Roxas said. “He might be in trouble, so we have to be fast.”

“Then we shall act with a bit of urgency,” Jiyura gestured to Nix, who gave the three one last smile before hurrying out the door. Once he was gone, Jiyura leaned back in her chair, placed her hands delicately on her knees. “Sit, please. I have a feeling there is more you wish to ask of me. And if not, I have some questions of my own for you.” 

Nobody moved, especially not the keyblade wielders. Instead, they stood resolutely, watching Jiyura as much as she watched them. “Maybe you should ask us your questions first.” Xion said.

Jiyura smiled, shook her head. “You’re my guests. Please,” she gestured for them to continue. 

Well, at least they’d tried. 

Riku cleared his throat. “I’d like to know why Nix and the others were fighting those soldiers. Why try to bomb them in the first place?”

“I suspect it was for a bit of fun, something to make the lives of the militia a little harder,” Jiyura sighed. “We don’t like to confront the militia typically. We simply don’t have the resources to directly oppose them anymore. However if the militia manage to corner us, they enjoy whittling our numbers down.” She grimaced, ran a hand along her arm. When she did, Riku noticed a scar barely concealed by the neck of her dress at her throat. “If Nix and the others were caught by the militia, they would have had no choice but to fight to defend themselves.”

Despite how innocent she made them sound, it was clear they weren’t the victims in this case. Riku was happy to let it slide, but Roxas snorted at her words. “I can’t believe it’s so one-sided.” He said shortly.

To this, Jiyura’s lips quirked up in a smirk Riku hadn’t expected. “Well, when we can cause chaos for the people who are simply letting us be devoured by the darkness, then we enjoy making their lives a bit harder. I won’t say that Nix’s attempt at bombing the militia was the first of its kind, though it’s certainly one of the worst attempts made.” Her expression melted away, left behind something harder, something like iron. “However, if you’re asking whether we are like those monsters parading themselves as Revolutionaries, then let me be clear. We aren’t like them. We’re all that’s left of what the Revolutionaries were supposed to be.” 

Riku caught a look shared between Xion and Roxas, but dared not say anything as Jiyura continued, “We are truly the voice of the people, the will of those crushed into the dirt for trying to rise up and better this city. We’ve spent too long in fear. Fearing the night, fearing the monsters, fearing the man that sits on his fool’s gold throne.” Her fingers clenched together, a muscle tightened along her jaw. “At this rate, the darkness will swallow the city, make no mistake. And yet, nobody is doing anything to stop it. Nobody, except for us.” 

“You keep talking about a darkness,” Xion said, Jiyura regarding her curiously. “What is the darkness? And how are you trying to stop it?” 

Jiyura didn’t respond immediately, still looking at Xion critically. Sensing something was wrong, Riku scrambled for something to say, something to distract her, when Roxas suddenly spoke, “We saw the darkness turn those soldiers into something terrible.”

“They looked like monsters,” Riku added quickly.

To this, Jiyura lost interest in Xion, frowned, leaned forward. “Monsters you say? Like the monsters that come from over the Boundary?”

For a moment, none of them said anything. Riku felt his mind racing for something to say, something that wouldn’t show just how little they knew of the world, just how out of place they really were.

Luckily, Xion spoke up first, “We couldn’t really tell. Their bodies just sort of… melted.”

Jiyura nodded. “Then my suspicions are correct. Cathedra Veri _is_ connected to the darkness, somehow.” She leaned back, glared at Riku. Seemed to search him, though for what, he couldn’t tell. 

“To answer your question, we believe the darkness was called to this city as a way to control its citizens. The capitol wished to coalesce this power and instead, they lost control of it and it began devouring us all. Their actions have led us to this point, where our city is shrinking nearly every day, where people are turning into the monsters we fear.

“As for your second question, there isn’t much we can do to stop the darkness. The militia has done what they have, though they’ve done very little, and we do not have the resources to fight the shadow directly. Instead, we seek to overthrow the false regent that sits in Cathedra Veri, to stop him from influencing the darkness even more. For a time, the shadow was quiet, but in recent times, it’s gotten so much worse.” She searched Riku again, perhaps waiting for him to react. “Something’s changed, though nobody knows what.” 

“This darkness,” Roxas spoke carefully, more carefully than he had spoken before, a quiet contemplation to his words, “you don’t know where it came from?”

She shook her head. “At first, it seemed to come out of nowhere. It just began eating away at the edges of our world, cutting us off from everything else. Then it began swallowing up our city. Nobody who goes into the darkness lasts very long. And now, people on this side of the Boundary have begun suffering from the darkness.” She gave a great sigh, as if there wasn’t nearly enough breath in her body to dispel all her anxiety. “The light was supposed to be safe. It was supposed to protect us. But now, nobody is safe.”

Something snapped through Riku, a realization, a question, that had him reeling. Jiyura’s sharp gaze latched onto him, no doubt noticing his sudden unease. “Jiyura,” he asked carefully, knowing he was stepping onto very thin ice, “did the darkness not originally come from people?”

Jiyura glanced him up and down, shook her head. “It arising from people is a fairly new development. The shadow seemed to just spill from the world itself. As if it was summoned from some great and terrible depth. That is why we believe it is the capitol’s doing. Something called the darkness from wherever it was sleeping. Someone inflicted this upon us. And we intend to stop it.”

Dread sunk into Riku as she spoke, though he hardly heard her last few words. The realization he’d had was rattling around in his mind, leaping up and down, an explanation as to why this world was so strange for Xion and Roxas and yet not so unfamiliar for him. But he couldn’t let Jiyura know. Nobody in this world could know the truth. He had to keep this secret, but more importantly, he knew just how urgent their task now was. 

They didn’t have any time left. 

He bowed to Jiyura. “Thank you for answering our questions. We shouldn’t keep you any longer. We’ll see ourselves out.”

“Not so fast,” Jiyura grinned at him, held up a hand to stop him from turning away. “You’ve had your questions, now I have mine.”

Riku bit the inside of his cheek, caught a glance out of the corner of his eye from Roxas. He hoped more than anything the other keyblade wielder would stay calm. 

“Of course, ma’am. Though I’m not really sure we’ll have any answers you’re looking for.”

“I’m not looking for any specific answer, not to worry. I am just curious is all.” Jiyura carefully stood. She was shorter than Riku, only slightly taller than even Xion, but her presence loomed over them all. Despite it all, Riku had to remind himself not to take a step back when she stepped toward him.

“Why do you look so much like the regent?” 

The question hung in the air, the silence pulled like wire strings. Yet Riku didn’t know what to say.

Thankfully, Jiyura continued, “Nix said you helped him, so I am not completely convinced that you are with the militia or the capitol, but your appearance is curious. What is your connection to him?”

“None, ma’am,” Riku said carefully. 

“Then why do I feel like I’m looking at him five years younger?”

Riku shook his head. “I don’t know how to convince you, but I’m not connected to the regent in any way. I’m just a warrior who happened to be at the right place at the right time.”

“A warrior, right. Who did you learn from, by the way? Where are your weapons? Also, I am curious over your questions about the shadow. Everyone knows about the shadow. So why do you three seem so clueless? Why do you want to know so much about the darkness in this city?” 

Riku swallowed, searched for something to say, though there was nothing he could think of, no words that came to mind. They’d never really been questioned by the people who inhabited the worlds they visited before. Not like this. But he understood why she was so cautious. Jiyura stood in a precarious spot. Her position depended on trusting nobody. And yet, here they were, strangers who helped some of her people seemingly for no reason and who apparently looked like her greatest enemy. 

He understood, but he didn’t know how to assuage her concerns. 

Behind him, Xion cleared her throat. “If you don’t mind me answering your question,” she said carefully, yet with a confidence Riku wasn’t used to hearing from her, “times are rough for everyone. We’ve simply been doing what we need to to survive.”

Jiyura gazed critically at Xion, who didn’t flinch under her gaze. The two sized each other up, until Jiyura turned away with a solemn nod. “You’re not wrong,” she said, returning to her seat. “Since you saved Nix and the others, I won’t question where your loyalties lie. However, for the safety of everyone here, I cannot let you stay long.” She gestured to the door. “It’s late. We have a curfew here to keep the militia out of our business, so we cannot allow you to leave until morning. Please, rest here for the night. But in the morning, I ask you leave. Tell nobody of this place. That being said, if you feel so inclined, tell the people that the Revolutionaries, the true ones, still fight for them.”

“You say that as if there are other Revolutionaries out there,” Roxas said suddenly. 

Jiyura’s eyebrow quirked up in a shrugging motion. “Sounds like you haven’t had the displeasure of meeting our once-kin,” she placed her hands in her lap, fingers intertwined, looked at each of them carefully, critically, but with a wisdom that Riku respected. And so, he listened when she spoke next, “There are a lot of falsities about this city at the moment. We are drowning in all that is fake. Be careful who you put your trust in. Chances are, they may not be who they claim to be.”

“And what about you?” Roxas crossed his arms defiantly. “How can we know you are who you say you are.”

Jiyura grinned at him. “That is exactly the questions you should be asking.” Again, she gestured to the door. “Nix will return in a moment. He will show you to a room you may use for the night. In the morning, we will see if there is any more news on your friend. Once you have that, I must ask you to leave. Please do not take my request as being rude. I simply must do all I can to protect our operations.”

“We understand,” Riku bowed again, felt Xion do the same beside him. Whether Roxas did or not, he couldn’t tell, but tried not to think about it. “Thank you for all you’ve done.”

“No, thank you,” she said it, and to a degree, she did mean it. To another, she sounded a bit like she was mocking him. 

Riku paused for a briefest of moments. In that moment, he wondered if Jiyura knew more than she had told them, but then knew that she did. She had secrets she would never reveal, no matter what he said to her. Whatever they may be, they were caught up in what was happening to this world. 

In the end, Riku knew it would be her downfall. And yet, he said nothing. 

Instead, he turned slowly, letting their eye contact break at the last possible second, going to join Xion and Roxas. The other keyblade wielders had left the room, left the burning gaze of Jiyura. Riku followed them, ignored the eyes boring into his back, eyes still searching for some clue as just who they really were. 

Once the door was shut between them, Riku let out a shudder, still feeling Jiyura’s gaze on him.

“Well that was interesting,” Roxas said. Riku couldn’t tell if he was being sarcastic or not. “At least we’ll get a warm bed for the night.”

“No,” Riku said, earning a confused look from both Xion and Roxas. “I think I’ve figured something out. But if I’m right, we’re in a lot of trouble here.”

The two waited, Roxas eventually gesturing for him to continue, but Riku shook his head. “Wait until we’re in a private place. I promise I’ll tell you then.”

Though Roxas looked a bit put off, he didn’t press the issue. 

They waited out in the hallway until Nix returned sometime later. He grinned at the three, asked if they’d enjoyed speaking with Jiyura, to which they only managed forced grins and a wrinkled nose from Roxas.

Nix only laughed. “Yeah, Ma can be like that. But she’s a great person and a wonderful leader. And I’m not just saying that ‘cause she’s my mom!” He tilted his head upward. “She’ll be great running this city one day.” 

His words were meant to be inspiring. Riku didn’t let his thoughts linger on them. They weren’t in the business of overthrowing governing systems typically. Keyblade wielders kept the balance of light and dark. That was their only role. Even this mission, to find Sora, was far from what they would typically do. What they certainly were not were mercenaries. This war between the Revolutionaries and the soldiers would go on without them. They just had to be careful not to get caught up in the middle of it. Luckily, Jiyura had made it clear she did not want them lingering. Nix would follow along with her. Or at least, he hoped he would. 

And it didn’t matter anyway. Riku knew they couldn’t stay. They’d be long gone before Nix even entertained the idea of trying to recruit them.

“Follow me!” Nix offered with a bit of a skip to his step, guiding them farther into the building. 

Along the hallway, the building did not become miraculously cleaner or less decrepit. It remained a sad, withering place for anyone to stay. To see Nix remain so upbeat and cheerful, knowing this was the place he called home, was a bit of bright light, a spark of hope amongst the looming dark. 

He reminded Riku a lot of Sora. So much so that his heart began to ache as he hadn’t allowed it to.

He pressed a hand to his chest, promised soon, very soon. 

Nix led them to a room with two bunk beds and very little else in terms of furnishings. He explained that most of the Revolutionaries were only there for a few days at a time before going out on missions, apologized for not having anything better. He did offer them some food as if in compensation, which Riku took with many thanks, Nix lingering, trying to continue their conversation, to learn more about them. Sensing he wasn’t going to be leaving on his own, the keyblade wielders quietly and skillfully pushed him out of the door so they would have privacy. Once the door shut, Riku waited by it, listening for when Nix’s footsteps finally faded down the hall before allowing himself to take a breath. 

Roxas glanced around the room, threw himself onto the bottom of one of the bed, watched as Xion clambered to the top, peering down at him with a smile and a giggle. Roxas returned her smile, relaxed for the first time since they’d arrived.

Then, he tilted his head to look at Riku. “So, what was it you had to tell us?”

Riku did not take a spot on one of the beds. “Don’t get too comfortable. We can’t stay here tonight.”

“Oh?” Xion looked a little disappointed. “We can’t run ourselves ragged looking for Sora. We’ll never find him that way.”

“We don’t have a choice,” Riku said, took a step forward. “We don’t have a lot of time.”

Roxas was already turning away, but Riku grabbed onto the bunk bed, caught his attention. The other keyblade wielder raised an eyebrow at him, a challenge in his look. Riku took it without blinking. Realizing Riku wasn’t going to back down, Roxas said, “I know you want to find Sora, but he’s not going anywhere. We can afford a good night’s sleep.” 

“You don’t understand,” Riku said simply, quietly, lowering his voice so the two had to lean in to hear him. “We’re running out of time because this is a sleeping world caught in a nightmare, and it’s waking up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A couple of you totally called that reveal, but rest assured there is more to come!
> 
> Not going to lie either, I really love Jiyura. She was one of those characters that I hadn't planned for, she just kind of appeared and asserted herself and I love her for that. 
> 
> Next week: a stranger appears. Or maybe it's someone we already know?


	17. Sleep to Unrest

The look on both Xion’s and Roxas’s face told him immediately neither understood what he had just said. With a slow sigh, he told them about his experience in the Mark of Mastery exam, how the Organization had taken advantage of the sleeping worlds he and Sora had traversed, how they had twisted their dreams and nearly stolen Sora with them. The two listened closely, Roxas shifting up in his bed, a slight tilting of his eyebrows an indication of his concentration. 

When he was done, a silence settled over them, each mulling over what Riku had said, what this meant for their quest. 

“Well,” Roxas was the brave one to break the silence, “if you’ve been to sleeping worlds before, then you know how to navigate them.”

“This is different,” Riku put a hand to his chin in thought, “the worlds Sora and I went to were never caught in a nightmare like this. It’s the reason the city is falling apart, why everyone is so aggressive and sad. It’s probably why there’s that darkness everywhere. It’s just the manifestation of the world’s bad dreams.”

“So what does that mean for us?” Xion asked, having propped herself up onto her elbows. 

“It means we have to find Sora and get out of here before the world wakes.”

“Sound like you and Sora were in plenty of worlds while they were waking up,” Roxas shrugged. “Weren’t you the ones waking them up?”

“We were, but whenever Sora and I woke a world in our exam, we would simply dive deeper into the next world,” Riku gestured out their window, to the wider world beyond just that city, “The difference then was we were both sleeping. Our bodies were safe in Master Yen Sid’s tower.” He nodded between them. “None of us are sleeping now. We came to this world from a portal through mine and Kairi’s dreams. If the world wakes up while we’re still here, I don’t know what would happen to us, but we don’t have a body to wake back up to.” 

“We might disappear into the nightmare,” Roxas concluded. Xion shot him a nervous look. Riku could only nod in agreement. 

“Or something worse. Sora’s the same. He’s not sleeping in another world. He’s physically here in this one. So we have to find him and get him back to Radiant Garden before this world is consumed by its nightmares or it wakes up.”

For a moment, Roxas sucked in his cheeks and considered Riku carefully. Xion was silent, staring at the ground, perhaps taking in all the new information. In the end, she raised her head first.

“Well, then you’re right. We can’t wait any longer.” She glanced at Roxas, Riku noticing how quickly Roxas’s attitude changed, how his eyebrows dipped into a determined grimace. “From what Jiyura said, sounds like things have been getting worse and worse. We must be near to the end of the nightmare. So what are we waiting for?” She leaped to the ground, let loose a feral grin full of teeth. “Let’s go!”

“Wait,” Riku held up a hand, the two keyblade wielders gazing curiously at him. “We should wait until everyone’s gone to bed. Jiyura was already suspicious of us. If she sees us trying to leave in the middle of the night, she might think we’re spies working for the regent.”

“What does that matter?” 

Riku did his best to bite down on the flare of anger that raced up his spine. Instead, he turned to Roxas, studied him carefully. “We can’t just walk out the front door without being suspicious.” 

“We aren’t here to make nice, Riku,” the other keyblade wielder slowly rose from the bed, walked to the door. “We’re here for a job. If we really are running out of time, then we can’t afford to sit around and wait just to make everyone else happy. We should go.”

“And what do you suggest?” Riku couldn’t help when the words snapped along his tongue. “Do we just stroll out the front doors?”

At this, Roxas smirked over his shoulder. “Of course not. We’re going to sneak out.” 

Riku blinked at him, not believing for one second he was being serious, until Xion giggled. “Right! Like we did while we were in the Organization.”

“Yup,” Roxas put his hands on his hips, challenged Riku with a raised eyebrow. “The Organization was all about sneaking around and keeping to the shadows. If you’re worried about getting caught, just follow our lead. We’ll get us out of here without anyone even noticing.” 

Even with as much skepticism as Riku had in their plan, he had to admit he didn’t have a better one. Roxas was right; they couldn’t afford to sit around and wait a moment longer. They needed to get out and continue their search for Sora. So he had to trust Xion and Roxas. And he did trust them. He trusted them with his life and with Sora’s. They wanted to find him just as badly as he did. Neither of them would do anything that put their mission in danger. 

So why was he so hesitant? 

“C’mon,” Roxas held out a hand to him. “Let’s go!”

And he looked so much like Sora in that moment. So much. Why did he have to look so much like Sora in these most critical moments?

Riku couldn’t say no to him. Not when he looked like that. 

So he sighed, shook his head, but stepped to follow as Roxas led them out into the hallway. 

\- - -

While Riku hadn’t given too much thought to the path they had taken through the ruined building, Roxas glanced up and down the hallway and stepped forward with a confidence that spoke to the fact that he knew exactly where he was going. Xion took up their rear, kept a watchful eye at their back. Riku just did his best not to make any noise. He’d always relied on heavy strikes and strong magics to win a fight. The other keyblade wielders were both smaller and more agile than he was. It served them well in that moment, when they walked a thin line along the hallway, not knowing who or if anyone was behind all the doors they passed.

It seemed to take all night just to sneak through the first few hallways, their steps careful, their movements slow and precise. From the outside, Riku hadn’t though the building had been quite this massive. Sure, he’d noticed it was somewhat large, a bit impressive if not for all the decay. But it felt like they were sneaking around endless corners and hallways, every now and then needing to duck into strange rooms to avoid being detected. Once, he thought he heard someone call out to them and startled, tripped, and nearly collapsed onto Roxas. Xion grabbed him and helped to balance him. Roxas gave him a wry smile and they continued forward.

For as long as it seemed they were wandering that building, Roxas very suddenly held up his hand, Riku peering over his shoulder to find themselves before the grand staircase. At the bottom of it, the entrance hall laid before them, several guards gathered near the doors. Although Riku couldn’t quite see who they were, he heard the distinct chatter of Nix’s voice, a small rise of laughter at whatever he had said.

Riku bit the inside of his cheek as he eyed the door. They had a couple of different options. Either they could turn away and look for a secondary exit. Or they could walk up to the guards and ask to be let out. Neither was a very good option for very different reasons. If they wanted to save time, then simply walking through the front door was going to be their best option. However, the thought of confronting Nix didn’t settle quite right in his stomach. But if they went to search for another exit, who knew how long that would take. And chances were, it was going to be guarded as well. Either way, they were going to have to explain themselves to someone. 

Taking a breath, his mind racing, trying to think of something to say, some explanation to give, Riku began to rise, until a hand pressed down on his shoulder. 

“Wait,” Xion whispered. “Let me go first. You two are a bit too intimidating.” Both Riku and Roxas glanced between each other, but neither tried to stop her when she rose and stepped into the light. They waited a few seconds, then followed her.

The guards didn’t notice their approach until they were already halfway down the stairs. When Nix saw them, he paused, something conflicted passing through his eyes.

Then, he smiled. “Hey guys! What are you doing out of bed? It’s pretty dark out.”

“Sorry,” Xion paused at the bottom of the stairs. “But we wanted to know if you’d heard anything about our missing friend?” 

The Revolutionary shook his head. “Sorry, no. Some guy said he sounded a bit like this kid who used to hang around with the regent, but I told him that was ridiculous. No friend of yours could have anything to do with the regent, after all! And besides. Nobody’s seen that guy for a while now.”

For a moment, Riku felt breathless. Someone who looked like Sora had been seen near the regent? Really? Was it really him?

Questions raced to his tongue, but Riku quickly swallowed them. As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t question Nix anymore on it. He couldn’t interrupt Xion’s conversation without endangering their chance of a quick escape.

But was it true? Was Sora somehow connected to this regent? The way that Jiyura had spoken of him made him seem like a force of darkness in the world. If that was true, Sora would never associate with him. So it had to be someone else. 

But… what if it wasn’t? 

“That’s too bad. We were really hoping someone would know something about where he’s gone.” Xion took several steps forward, Riku and Roxas carefully following. Riku tried to remain calm and relaxed, noticed Roxas had put a hand on his hip and was leaning casually to one side. How he made it look so natural Riku didn’t know. 

Nix frowned as they approached, hefted his rifle over his shoulder. “Sounds like you’re really worried about him.”

Xion nodded. “He’s been missing for a long time now. We’re worried something may have happened to him.”

“Well, out in this city, anything’s possible. Especially in today’s times. Monsters are everywhere, the darkness is closing is, the militia’s gone crazy.” Nix shook his head sadly. “I know why you’d be worried. I’ve got people I’m looking for too. They just up and disappeared one day. No trace left. As if they’d simply vanished into thin air.”

_Or they woke up from the nightmare._ Riku did not say this, tried to move as little as possible, kept everyone’s focus on Xion.

Xion was smiling back at Nix, with the same sorrow in her eyes. “I’m sorry you’ve lost people. I hope you find them one day.” 

Nix nodded, lowered his rifle. “Well, let me guess as to why you’re here. You want to leave so you can go look for him?”

“If you don’t mind,” Xion clasped her hands behind her back, rocked on her heels. 

Even as she spoke though, Nix’s sad smile returned. “Sorry, but I can’t let you go. It’s way too dangerous out in the dark. The Boundary doesn’t keep monsters out as well as it used to anymore. Plus, if the militia sees you out on the streets, they’ll detain you. Some of those people never make it home, either.”

“Oh, you saw how capable we are.” Xion tilted her head, grinned. “I think we’ll manage just fine.”

Nix blinked at her. Seemed to sway. Then, he smiled sadly again. 

And the glass behind him exploded.

In the shockwave of sound and energy that pulsed through the room, Riku almost couldn’t tell what had happened. All he knew was he was knocked back, digging his heels in to stop himself from stumbling. Next to him, he felt Xion nearly fall, grabbing for her arm to steady her as Roxas moved beside him, throwing his arms in front of himself. 

When the dust began to settle, Riku glanced to the keyblade wielders, made sure they were okay, then raised his gaze to see two of the Revolutionary guards laid on the ground, another one screaming as he lifted his rifle, firing into the cloud of dust from the disintegrated window. Kneeling nearby, Nix looked up. There was blood running down his face. With a shaking hand, he wiped at it, saw the keyblade wielders standing nearby. Riku could read his thoughts as they raced through his eyes. 

_What happened? Why? Is this your fault? Have you really betrayed us? Was I wrong? Why is this happening…?_

At that moment, soldiers burst through the dust cloud, rifles raised, voices shouting. There was more than a score of them, far too many to face on their own, far too many to stop. Something prickled at the tips of Riku’s fingers. He knew it was the spark that summoned Braveheart, the light that shone in his heart. But in this moment, it was utterly useless. 

Riku watched as Nix closed his eyes, as his hope seemed to wither away. He took a step forward, an instinctual movement, his heart demanding he act. But he was swayed when Nix turned, when something stronger than hope blazed in him as he turned to face the soldiers. Even if he knew it was futile, he wasn’t running away.

He knew his fate. There was nothing they could do to change it. 

As much as Riku wanted to stand next to him, he was pulled away when Xion grabbed him, yelled, “Run!” 

Then, they were running down a hallway, empty, abandoned, with flickering lights coming from the windows. Riku peered outside, tried to see what the lights might be. He caught only the silhouette of something floating just beyond the glass before it, too, blew outward, raining dust and shards into the corridor. Riku reached for the others, heard Roxas yelling and Xion whimpering, tried to see what had happened. He took a step, another. His next was into empty air.

In the confusion and the dust and the noise, Riku couldn’t see exactly what had happened. All he knew was that he was tumbling down suddenly, crashing into a pile of boxes and trash below, coming to a rest staring up into the night sky. He had only a moment to catch his breath before he realized two mechanical arrow-like contraptions were hovering just above him, level with the blown-out windows. Right where he, Xion, and Roxas had been standing.

Riku jolted, his heart racing. 

“Xion! Roxas!” He called, though he had a little hope they would call back. He would have to find them, get them out of this, somehow.

With a growl, he kicked himself free of the trash pile, trying to find his feet. With an ungraceful roll, he landed on the ground, scanned his surroundings. He was faced with an open courtyard, surrounded on three sides by the towering building. To the north, the courtyard opened to face into the city. Even in the dark of night, only by the light of the stars and a strange yellow moon above, Riku could see someone standing there. Another pair of mechanical contraptions hovered on either side of the man, framing his unmoving figure. 

Even if he couldn’t know exactly who this man was or what his intent may be, Riku summoned his keyblade. He couldn’t be distracted by whoever this was. He needed to get to Xion and Roxas and get them to safety, before the soldiers found them. 

“Who are you?!” Riku shouted, glanced for a way to escape. The building was tall, but he could probably jump it. But that meant leaving Xion and Roxas behind. 

The man in front of him still hadn’t moved. In the low light afforded to him, Riku couldn’t pick out many details, but he didn’t miss the sword in his hand. It was glowing with an ethereal red light.

“Well? Answer me!” Riku called.

Only then did the man shift, moving from side to side. “You… I know you.”

For a moment, just a breath, Riku froze, knowing it wasn’t possible for anyone in this world to know who he was. Then, Jiyura’s words came back to him, her accusation that he looked just like the regent, and he shifted slightly, moved to look maybe just a little less threatening. 

“I’m not who you think I am,” he said. “I’m not the regent.”

“Oh, I know.” The man stepped forward, paused in a ray of light provided by a nearby streetlamp. Though it flickered, Riku clearly saw a face with a sharp chin, silver hair, and eyes, one colored red, the other blue. His was a face so strikingly familiar that Riku hesitated.

“You’re—” Riku stopped, bit his lip. This man must have been the regent Jiyura feared. And he was here, at the Revolutionaries’ base. How had he found them? What did he want? Nothing good, that was for sure. And in any case, Riku didn’t have time to interfere. He had to find Xion and Roxas, get away from the brewing conflict between the Revolutionaries and the regent.

A single thought had him pausing, wondering. After all, Nix had said someone who looked like Sora had been seen with the regent. 

His resolve wavered, for only the moment. Then, he lowered his keyblade. “Tell me, please, do you know a boy called Sora?”

The man’s eyes widened. In a movement nearly too fast to see, he drew another weapon from his side, a crossbow, a bolt shot straight for Riku’s heart. With a flick of his wrist, a barrier intercepted the blow, an instinctual movement, one that left him stunned, still trying to figure out exactly what was happening. 

“Stop! I don’t want to fight!”

“You’re the mirror,” the regent growled. “The one he told me about.” His arms sagged to his sides. His weapons were held loose in his hands. Although he had turned his face away from Riku, the keyblade wielder could swear he saw anger in his snarl. “Where is he? Where. Is. HE?!” 

The attack came just as suddenly as the first, but this time, Riku was ready. Braveheart slashed downward to catch the sword thrust at his heart. He didn’t even really see the regent move. He was just suddenly in front of him. The snarl on his face made him look a bit monstrous.

Riku felt a spell at his fingertips, cried _“Thunder!”_

Again, he blinked and the regent was well out of the range of his spell, the mechanical arrows suddenly spiraling toward Riku. Riku cut through them easily enough, felt something move at his back, swung a counter only for his keyblade to pass through air. When he turned again, he was faced with the regent. In his hands, he no longer held a crossbow but some sort of blaster. Riku didn’t have time to dodge the next attack, braced for the inevitable strike. 

Instead of pain, when the blaster fired, it summoned a force that wrapped around Riku, something that pulled him in and held him in place. He felt as if he were trapped in time and space, unable to move, unable to hardly think. The look of anger had faded in the regent’s eyes, now replaced with a curious one, disgust lingering just beyond the light. 

“Tell me, where is he?”

Riku tried to pull against the force of the blaster, only succeeded in being pulled a little closer. “I… don’t know— what you’re talking about!”

The regent growled, raised his sword. Riku wanted to block, to dodge, to do anything. But he was trapped. 

The sword cut downward. 

Riku flinched, looked away, saw a flash as something crashed between him and the regent, as the sword met a white keyblade, a black one swinging in a wide arc, knocking the blaster away from Riku. The force dissipated, released Riku to stumble to the ground, to gasp for breath. Roxas stayed between him and the regent as he recovered. The regent gazed at Roxas, a shadowed and incomprehensible twist to his lips. Then, in a movement nearly too fast for Riku to properly see, the regent’s sword flashed upward and Roxas ducked quickly away, coming to a stop beside him. 

More movement, this time behind the regent. Xion let out a cry as she swung her keyblade, but the regent seemed to twist slightly and another sword spun upward, catching her attack. Unlike the red blade he carried, this one was silver and gold in color and twisted on its own, as if held by an invisible hand. Xion fought to push against it, but was forced to retreat when the regent swung his red sword at her. 

“You okay?” Roxas glanced over his shoulder to Riku. 

Riku blinked, nodded. “Yeah. You?”

“We’re fine.” He glared at the regent. “Who’s this guy?”

Riku shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. We need to get out of here.”

“Right,” Roxas seemed to catch Xion’s eye, the other keyblade wielder nodding. 

The regent noticed, hefted his blaster, which shifted, rearranging itself until it had taken the form of the crossbow. Reticles appeared over the regent, but Roxas lifted his keyblades, summoned beams of light and darkness. They cut across the field, drove the regent back toward Xion, who readied her keyblade. In the moment where he came within range, she struck, and he was gone. She stumbled, surprised, glanced to find him. He’d reappeared back in the streetlamp light, now flanked by two others. One man held a halberd, the other two rapiers. 

This was getting out of hand. 

“We have to get out of here!” Riku said. 

Xion leaped back to join the boys, nodded to what Riku had said. “Right, then let’s go.” She held a hand to her heart, closed her eyes, and when she opened them, a light flared between them and the regent. It was a light so bright, so powerful, that Riku could feel the burning warmth that wicked off of it. “Go!” Xion’s voice commanded them, urged them on, and they went. They each leaped for the roof of the building, leaving the barrier of light to shield their escape. 

At its peak, Xion and Roxas raced over the roof, away from the fight, away from the regent. But Riku paused. Gazed down at the three men gathered on the ground. The regent’s two companions were still blinded by the light, but the regent himself had appeared right where they had been only moments before. He hadn’t spotted Riku yet. It was best he didn’t. 

He turned, hurried to catch up to Xion and Roxas. Followed as they fled deeper into the city.

While his body raced forward, his mind lingered at the Revolutionaries’ base, with the regent, with those they had left behind. Who knew what would become of Nix and Jiyura. He doubted they would see them again, could only hope they would wake from this nightmare to a better world.

However, somehow he knew that wasn’t the last they’d seen of the regent. Their paths would cross again, he was sure. His stomach was already twisting in dread and anticipation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooooo, whatcha think of Yozora now? =P
> 
> Also we are officially halfway through part 2! Pretty excited about what's coming up in later chapters. Should be fun.


	18. Unrest to Unease

For as chaotic as the scene had been at the Revolutionaries’ base, it was amazing to Riku how quiet the rest of the city was. 

They ran into that fading quiet, taking no heed to where they were going, as long as it put distance between them and the Revolutionaries’ base. They ran until Roxas suddenly grunted, tripped, collapsed against an alleyway wall. 

“Roxas!” In an instant, Xion was next to him, her hands hovering over him. 

Riku spun quickly around, noticing that Roxas was holding his side, his lips pressed together to stop himself from grimacing. Carefully, he took Roxas’s arm and hooked it over his shoulder. “Lean on me. Let’s find a better place to stop.” Roxas said nothing, but he didn’t resist as Riku helped him along.

Xion took the lead, glancing around corners and keeping an eye on the two of them as they slowly navigated the alleyways. Eventually, she was able to pull aside a large board, revealing an opening into an abandoned building. They slipped inside without a second thought, Riku scanning for anything out of the ordinary. Although abandoned and derelict like the Revolutionaries’ base, this building didn’t have the benefit of people having lived in it for a long time. The interior was dusty and ruined, dark and moldy. It wasn’t a place Riku wanted to stay for long, but they needed to assess Roxas’s injuries.

_When did he even get hit?_ Riku wondered, thought it must have been when Xion and Roxas had been separated from him. But then, he also remembered the moment Roxas has crossed blades with the regent, the casual flick of the regent’s blade and Roxas’s quick retreat. Had it been then? Had Roxas taken a blow meant for Riku? 

“You know, you think really loudly,” there was a smile in Roxas’s voice, one that caught Riku off guard. The smirk on his lips didn’t quite match his tone, but it was more familiar than the warmth in his voice. “I’ll be okay.” 

“What happened?” Xion asked.

Roxas’ smirk deepened. “Riku’s lookalike got a good hit in.”

Xion nodded, raised her keyblade to try a healing spell. Riku held it down. “Let me do it.” Xion blinked at him, but nodded, let him raise Braveheart over Roxas and shout, _“Heal!”_

A soothing green light washed over them, Roxas’s expression melting into one of peace. Even Xion leaned toward the light, relaxing in its wake. As worried as he had been about the other two, Riku hadn’t realized just how banged up he’d been in the confrontation, but he didn’t miss the way his body eased and the aches burning under his skin faded into healthy contentment. 

Roxas glanced at Xion, smiled brightly, Xion sighing in relief as he sat up. 

“See? All better.” 

Riku glanced him over, nodded. “Let’s rest for a moment. Then we’ll figure out where we go next.” 

Neither Xion nor Roxas needed to be told twice. Xion collapsed at Roxas’s side, leaned into his back, Roxas supporting her and tilting his head back against hers. There was a depth to their comfort with each other, a sweet, kind undertone to their leaning against each other, that made something sour crawl up the back of Riku’s throat. It was familiar in a way that made him hurt, something lost that had yet to be found. He was caught in this moment of pain for several seconds, until Xion opened her eyes, tilted her head up toward him. She reached out a hand, a gesture for him to join them, but Riku hesitated. He hesitated just long enough that Roxas rolled his neck, shot him a curious, expectant look. Maybe it wasn’t an invitation. Or maybe it was. Either way, he slowly sat next to them, slipped easily into a void that maybe he couldn’t fill. Even if he couldn’t necessarily fill it, he found it was not an empty space that he was unwelcome in. 

The three sat, maybe not happily, but contently, for several moments.

Then, Xion slowly pulled her knees to her chest. “What… do you think happened to everyone? Nix, and Jiyura, and everyone else?”

Neither Riku nor Roxas said anything. Xion curled up around herself a bit more, a tremble to her lips. Riku watched her, reached out to put a hand on her shoulder. 

“If nothing else, they’ll wake up from this nightmare.”

Xion looked up at him, water misting her eyes. “And what happens then?” 

“I suppose they either end up in a world like Traverse Town, or maybe as this world wakes up more, they’ll reappear just where they were. Either way, things will be better for them than they are here.”

There was an uncomfortable silence after that. None of them quite knew what to make of the whole situation. For as much as Riku had ventured through sleeping worlds, had seen other inhabitants in said worlds, he’d never faced anything like this. Everything about this world was at its extreme and they hadn’t been prepared at all to face anything like this. Still, this was the situation they were in. They’d find a way through. They always did. 

He took in a deep breath, let it out in a long sigh, “I’m glad you two are all right, at least. I’m sorry about what happened.”

The two glanced at each other, then to Riku, with deadpan expressions. “You know, it wasn’t your fault that we got in that mess.”

“Yes it is,” Riku pressed a hand to his heart, felt it fluttering under his fingers. It hurt whenever he thought of it, as it had for the last year. “I was supposed to lead this team to find Sora and so far, all I’ve done is gotten us entrenched in this weird war that’s happening, a fight we were never meant to be a part of.”

Xion tilted her head, considered him, then shook her head. “I don’t think that’s true.” To Riku’s confused expression, she smiled. “Well, that guy you were fighting. He looked a lot like you, so that must mean he was the regent Jiyura talked about.”

“Yeah,” Roxas leaned toward Riku to scrutinize his face. “He did look a lot like you. I can understand why she was confused.”

Even if he had to admit they were right, the thought of the regent sent chills running up Riku’s back. He turned away from them. “Maybe, but it that doesn’t mean anything.”

“Doesn’t it?” Xion’s voice rose over his, calling his attention even as he tried to look away. She raised her hand and waved back toward the Revolutionaries’ base. “Nix said that someone who looked like Sora had been seen with the regent until recently. After that, things began to change.” She pressed a hand to her chest. “The regent wasn’t acting well. He was so angry and hurt. If it really was Sora who was with him, then I think something’s happened. Something that may be linked to why the world is falling into its nightmares so much faster.”

“Something to do with Sora?” Roxas asked. 

Xion shrugged. “I don’t know for certain, but I wouldn’t be surprised.”

Although she didn’t go on, Riku felt there was more to her thoughts. “But?” He prompted. 

Xion gripped her hands tightly, tilted her head toward Roxas. Roxas pressed a thoughtful hand to his chin. “Well. Keyblade wielders are supposed to keep the balance of light and dark, right? If Sora’s presence here was helping to keep the balance, then if he’s gone, that balance would be tipped to one side and things would start to spin out of control.”

“So you think Sora isn’t here anymore?” Even as Xion said it, Riku knew that wasn’t right. He knew Sora had to be here. It could have only been Sora who had guided them to this world, that bright light that had held them together through the darkness, through the rift from waking to sleep. 

“No, he just isn’t where he’s supposed to be. Something’s knocked him out of where he once was, keeping the balance.” Riku frowned, lifted his gaze to the ceiling. It was crumpled and rusted and looked liable to break and rain down upon them. “The question now is, if his place was at the regent’s side, then where is he now?” 

“Not with the Revolutionaries,” Xion said.

“And not with the soldiers,” Roxas added.

Riku bit his lip, tried to think, remembered something Jiyura had said. “He might be…,” he paused, thinking as Xion and Roxas looked at him. “He might be with the other Revolutionaries. You know, the ones Jiyura talked about. The ones that weren’t being true to their original purpose anymore.”

“But why?” Xion said. 

Roxas shook his head. “We can’t know for certain. But it is at least an idea. If we can track down the rest of the Revolutionaries, even if Sora’s not there, we might at least find more clues. That’s more than what we’ve been going off ever since we got to this world.” He nodded, once, with a smile. “It’s a start.”

“A good one!” Xion added.

They both turned to Riku, as if waiting for him to interject his own optimism. There was nothing he could think to say though. Not in that moment. Not when they were still so far from finding Sora.

As he remained speechless, he watched the enthusiasm wither away from the other keyblade wielders. They glanced to each other, then to Riku, waiting for something he simply couldn’t give them.

“What’s wrong?” Xion asked.

Riku stared at her, found he still had nothing to say. Nothing he wanted to say, at least. There were things he could say. Painful things he didn’t want to admit. Things he’d been holding in his heart for a long time. Looking into Xion and Roxas, he found them both patient and expectant, waiting to hear what he had to say without ever once demanding his words. They stood at his side as they waited for him, for whatever may be holding back.

They really did remind him of Sora and Kairi. In some sick way, they should have, but it was more than just their origin that struck Riku speechless. Even if they didn’t fill the voids left from his friends, they didn’t try to, standing as their own people trying to comfort him how they knew best. Like Sora and Kairi, they were stalwart in their support of him, even if Roxas was sometimes skeptical of him. Even then, he was still there. Never having turned his back on Riku, never having dismissed him outright. He was force that pushed against Riku, but never to push him away. Likewise, Xion was a force that kept his feet on the ground. That served as a reminder to who and what he was, to his place in the world. Together, their push and pull had kept him in a center of balance, after all that had happened on this mission, before when he had wandered the halls of the Land of Departure. 

They were there for him. But he’d been rather lousy at being there for them, he realized. 

He’d been so caught up in his own worries, his own sorrows, that he hadn’t truly given much thought to what Xion and Roxas wanted, what they thought. His perception of them had never extended beyond them also wanting to save Sora, as he did. He’d been selfish, thinking of them only through the lens of his own goals. Standing before them, them waiting for him to speak, he realizing he knew so little about what their true wants were, he felt completely and utterly guilty. 

“I—” he swallowed, the words disappearing from his tongue. Xion tilted her head slightly, inviting him to try again. 

Riku ground his teeth together. Maybe they did want to hear what was in his heart. Maybe they did want to help him not just because they wanted to find Sora, but because they wanted to help him. And maybe it was worth the risk, giving over to them in this, a moment of weakness. Where he had always been weak, his friends had been strong. Maybe Xion and Roxas could be strong for him now, when he felt so absolutely weak.

“I… just have a hard time believing in hope sometimes,” he said quietly, his gaze drifting away from the two, him unable to face them in that moment. “I spent so long wishing and dreaming for Sora and Kairi to come back, so I wouldn’t be alone anymore. It’s hard for me to truly believe with all my heart. I want to. But I’m afraid of what will happen if we can’t find Sora. If we can’t save him.” He tried to find something else to say, a better way to explain it. There had to be words that best expressed what he was feeling. If there were, he didn’t know them.

In his silence, Xion leaned forward. She placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezed it, smiled when he dared look up at her. “I know. And I’m sorry you’ve felt alone. You never were. We were always there for you.”

“I know you were, but,” Riku paused again, pressed a hand to his heart. “In Ansem’s study, I realized you all had known about this plan to find and save Sora for a while. You had been planning a way to get him back, but you’d kept me in the dark. You’d left me in the Land of Departure. Alone.”

Xion’s fingers tightened on his shoulder, her smile fading. Just as her confidence slipped, Roxas took her place. “Did you feel like we had left you? That we didn’t care?” He asked such difficult questions simply, as if they were easy to answer.

Riku chewed on his lip. “In a way, I did.”

“Well that wasn’t it,” Roxas shook his head, his lip pulled in a thin line. “We didn’t want to tell you about Sora because we knew you were worried. We just didn’t want to worry you any more than you already were. We were concerned about you. And maybe our worry got in the way of what you really needed.” He paused, leaned forward. “And if that’s the case, then I’ll say I’m sorry. We didn’t mean to leave you in the dark for so long.”

“Yeah!” Xion shifted her grip to his hand. “I’m sorry, too. If I had known how much you were hurting, I would have helped you more.”

“I hope you understand, we never meant to hurt you. We did what we thought was best. Obviously though, we were wrong.” Roxas waited, but for what, Riku wasn’t sure. That is, until he said, “Could you forgive us?”

Riku paused, blinked. Looked between his companions. Xion was smiling softly, an invitation to relax, Roxas leaned back casually, but his eyes were fixed, serious in his words, easy in his demeanor. Both accepting him, both willing to reach for him, if he were willing to reach back.

Slowly, he squeezed Xion’s hand, returned her smile. “Thank you,” he said, noticing the slight curve on Roxas’s face, the start of a grin or smirk, “and I do forgive you. I hope you’ll forgive me for being too caught up in myself.”

Xion shook her head even as he spoke. “There’s nothing to forgive. We’re you’re friends, Riku! We’ll be there when you need us!”

Maybe he shouldn’t have been surprised by her words, but he was, so much so that he jolted a little. But Xion just kept smiling and Roxas was grinning again. And they meant it. They truly meant it.

Something unwound in Riku, a tight ball of tension that had been settled in his core for a long time. It spread like roots, reaching out to warm his heart and his limbs. The warmth spread to his fingertips, into Xion and Roxas, allowing their warmth into his hand, into his heart. He’d always thought Sora would help him build the bridge that would connect him back to the souls he couldn’t seem to reach. He never realized he’d had that potential all along.

When he smiled again, he found it easy, natural. He found it warm and true. And he found that his heart felt just a little lighter than it had before. 

“So,” Roxas pushed himself to his feet, seemingly unaware of the critical eye both Xion and Riku put him under. He stretched his arms up, then flung his hands out side to side and summoned his keyblades. “Now that we’ve got that settled and we’re all healed up, what’s our next step?”

Riku paused, wondering over what their next move could be, when Xion giggled. “You look just like Axel!”

Roxas grinned. “No, wait,” he dismissed Oathkeeper and hefted Oblivion over his shoulder just like Axel did, leaning back into his stance before pressing a finger to his temple. “Got it memorized, Xion?”

She giggled behind her palm. Even Riku couldn’t help a snort from escaping him. Roxas laughed as well, and Riku allowed himself the moment to relax, to enjoy the company of his friends despite all that had happened. They laughed together for the first time in this strange world and somehow, he knew things could actually get better after all. 

\- - -

It was decided that wherever these other Revolutionaries were, they clearly were not going to be anywhere near where Jiyura’s band had been set up. Instead, the keyblade wielders would have to go farther into the city to look for clues of their whereabouts. And so, once everyone was rested and ready to go, they stole out onto the streets. 

They didn’t get far before they realized that during the night, the city was on lockdown, as Nix had said. Soldiers patrolled everywhere. There hung a heaviness over the city that had been hidden by the bustling crowds of the daytime. Shadows seemed to move when they turned their backs. Riku had a sinking suspicion if they were caught by the soldiers, they’d be recognized, but they couldn’t stay where the shadows and the darkness could get to them. So they kept going, avoiding the patrols as much as possible.

To this end, he stepped back and let Xion and Roxas lead them much as they had in the Revolutionaries’ hideout. They shot between alleys and across streets right as the soldiers’ backs were turned, dodged patrols and slowly but surely made their way toward the heart of the city. They stopped for a couple of hours to rest and to nap quickly, though Riku stayed awake, watching over Xion and Roxas. He was tired, yes, but he couldn’t allow himself to sleep quite yet. When the two woke, they got back to moving, slipping silently from one building to the next. 

They found no trace of the Revolutionaries, nothing but the constant patrols of the soldiers. However, they also didn’t see any signs of the regent either. That was good. Riku hadn’t faced him for more than a few minutes, but it had been long enough to realize he was very strong. He would be a tough opponent to face. They simply didn’t have time for such a fight. Nor could they afford anything that might jeopardize their mission. If someone were to get seriously injured then they may be forced to retreat and who knows if, how, or when they’d be able to return. Sora needed them. If they didn’t find him and get him out of the world before the nightmare was over, then he could disappear forever. 

That simply wasn’t an option. Riku _had_ to find Sora. Before it was too late.

It seemed he blinked and suddenly, the sun was rising over the city. People replaced soldiers on the streets. Crowds swelled. Soon enough, it was easy for the three to slip into one and blend right in. They followed the crowds for a little while, until the tallest buildings rose up around them and they paused to find themselves in what must have been the beating heart of the city. 

Riku pulled Xion and Roxas aside, slipping into another café. This time, they didn’t try to order anything. He doubted the problem with people knowing what munny was would matter from store to store. Still, he didn’t miss the sad little look on Xion’s face as someone passed by holding a plate of muffins. Roxas followed her eyes, frowned deeply. 

“I can’t wait to go home,” he grumbled, mostly to himself, though Xion did pat his knee encouragingly. 

“It won’t be long,” Riku muttered. If nothing else, they knew this world didn’t have much longer. One way or the other, they’d be gone from this world, maybe forever. 

He bit his lip, glanced outside. He didn’t even know where to start still. Jiyura and Nix had given them a small tidbit of information, but not enough. Perhaps their best course of action was to start talking to people, to see what they knew. But who and what to ask? If Sora had been close to the regent, then surely the soldiers would know about him, but Riku still didn’t trust that they would be receptive to speaking peaceably with them.

Besides, something was gnawing at the back of his mind, something that he kept to himself, shrouded it from Xion and Roxas. Maybe because he was afraid of what it meant. Maybe because he had fooled himself into thinking it was nothing.

The regent had recognized him. To some degree, he’d known who Riku was. That could only be true if Sora had told him about Riku. But why attack him? If he knew about Riku through Sora, then the regent should have known he would mean no harm.

And, there was something else. Something the regent had asked of him again and again.

_Where is he?_

Had he been asking about Sora? Did that mean he truly didn’t know where to find him? Was he also looking for the missing keyblade wielder? If he was, then they should have been able to team up to look for him. And yet, the regent hadn’t seemed interested at all in listening to anything Riku had to say. 

“Uh oh.” Riku was pulled from his thoughts by Xion, who gave him a toothy smile. “Roxas is right. You do think really loudly.”

“What’s on your mind?” Roxas didn’t look all that interested in what he had to say, but he did flick a glance over to Riku before turning back to scour the café and the patrons around them. 

Riku grimaced deeply but was saved from having to say anything when a waitress asked if they were going to order anything.

\- - -

As soon as they stepped back onto the street, they headed back toward where they had come. Their only clues so far had come from the Revolutionaries and the soldiers. Maybe they’d be able to pick something else up from someone else on that side of town. 

They hadn’t gone far when a siren began wailing. 

All three keyblade wielders paused, glanced urgently around. Everyone else immediately ran, hurrying toward the nearest buildings. 

“There!” Roxas said, gesturing. Down the street, soldiers were streaming toward something.

“Revolutionaries?” Xion asked.

_Maybe._ Riku thought. With Jiyura’s group probably wiped out, if it was Revolutionaries, it had to be the other faction. This could be their chance to find out more about them.

He took a step toward the soldiers, heard a shout. When he turned, he realized both Xion and Roxas had been swept up in the semi-panicked crowd, pushing them inevitably toward the building. Riku was managing to hold his ground somewhat, but he wouldn’t be able to drag the other two along with him. For now, all they could do was follow the crowd into the building. He pushed through the crowd to join his friends, allowed himself to be directed inside, where soldiers were trying to encourage people to move up. Riku made sure to duck when the soldiers looked their way, but they didn’t pick him out amongst the other faces. 

“What now?” Xion asked.

“I feel like we’ve been saying that a lot recently,” Roxas grumbled. “We’ve got to actually start doing something.”

While Riku agreed with the sentiment, the truth was they hadn’t had much of a choice but to simply follow where the world took them. As it were, they had arrived with very little in terms of plans. The only thing that they had truly counted on was finding Sora and getting him out. That had been their first mistake, but they couldn’t have known the entire situation of the world would be this. Between the factions splitting the streets in a vicious war, the city’s leader looking a lot like Riku, and said leader having a hateful vendetta against him, he was honestly surprised they’d even made it this far. They’d had to only react simply because they hadn’t had a chance to do anything else. And besides, Riku had found that the worlds had an uncanny ability to direct keyblade wielders to where they needed to go. He’d rarely ever shown up in a world and wandered around aimlessly. A purpose to his path had always presented itself, even if he hadn’t been sure just what that purpose was. He was almost certain this was the same. 

Still, he couldn’t let Xion and Roxas start to doubt their quest nor could he afford to keep drifting around listlessly. They still needed a plan. Just what that plan would be though, he couldn’t say. 

Someone clearing their throat had Riku looking up, seeing Roxas eying someone over his shoulder. Riku turned and a couple of people turned quickly away. He frowned, wondering if they were attracting attention because they were keyblade wielders or because he looked like the regent.

“We should move,” he suggested, Xion and Roxas agreeing with silent nods.

They made their way up a flight of stairs to a large window overlooking the city. It was eerily empty and silent outside. A single patrol of soldiers hurried this way, then everything was still. Wind blew debris along the empty sidewalk. Somehow it didn’t look like the same city at all, but it felt familiar. This entire world felt empty and vague. It was fading away, that was for sure. But it was still unnerving for Riku to see. The sleeping worlds he’d gone to hadn’t felt like this. None of them had been trapped in a nightmare as deeply as this one was.

Which led to the question, why was this world stuck in a nightmare? 

_Why was Sora sent here?_

He didn’t know the answers. Maybe they would never know the answer. 

But he gave voice to the question, saying to Xion and Roxas, “Why do you think Sora was sent here? To a sleeping world in a nightmare?”

The two glanced between each other, frowned. “Well,” Xion reasoned, “maybe as punishment for misusing the power of waking, like Master Yen Sid said. Or maybe because this was the world that was hurting the most.” 

“A world that is hurting this much is sure to have called out for help,” Roxas continued her thought as if they were of the same mind. “And Sora always reaches out to those that need help.”

Xion nodded. “Or something else could have called him to this world. Who knows?”

“Or maybe,” the voice startled the three, all of them turning to face a man standing a few paces behind them. “Maybe it was just a stroke of bad luck, a bad draw, bad timing. Such as the way the worlds sometimes work.”

Riku blinked at the man, feeling a strange sense of familiarity, as if he’d seen his face before. Both Xion and Roxas fell immediately into battle stances, light sparking at their fingertips.

“You!” Xion hissed.

Roxas growled, “What are _you_ doing here, Luxord?”

“Luxord?” The name rung painfully in Riku’s head. It took him a moment, but eventually, the blond goatee and prideful smirk led him to remember a black coat and golden eyes. Luxord, one of Xehanort’s thirteen vessels. Now standing before the keyblade wielders, his eyes blue, wearing what seemed to be a rather stylish black suit in place of his Organization XIII coat. However, in his ear, he still wore an earring in the shape of the nobody sigil. It really was Luxord. 

Luxord raised a finger to his lip, glanced to see if anyone was paying attention. Nobody seemed to have noticed the escalating tension, but he spoke quietly and gestured as if to implore they do the same. “I don’t go by that name anymore. It’s Rould now, actually. And that’s rather a tricky question to answer. I have a better question instead,” he held out his hand. “You’re looking for Sora, aren’t you?”

None of them moved. Riku didn’t even dare to breathe. Only Roxas dare narrow his eyes slightly, prompting a deep chuckle from the former nobody. “I thought so. Well, I have some information that will be pertinent to your search.”

“Why?” Xion asked, simple, straightforward. “Why do you want to give us this information? What’s in it for you?”

“Again, that’s rather a complicated question,” Rould glanced to the crowd around them, “and honestly, not something we should be discussing with so many ears around. Shall we take this a floor up?”

Immediately, Xion and Roxas looked to Riku. As much as Riku didn’t want to trust a former Xehanort vessel of all people, especially not with something like this, he hesitated. After all, Isa had fought alongside Xehanort and now he was loyal to the keyblade wielders. Was Rould the same? And if he were in this world, he might have some more information about its condition, about exactly what was happening. He also knew who Sora was. They wouldn’t have to explain themselves as they would have to with any other inhabitant of this world. 

It seemed too good to be true. It also seemed too easy to assume it was. 

If he really thought about it though, Riku knew that had no choice. Maybe Rould knew that too. 

Slowly, he nodded. “Let’s go somewhere a bit more private, but let me warn you.” He raised his hand, showed Rould the sparks of his keyblade. “Don’t try to cross us. We’ve already stopped you twice. Don’t think we can’t or won’t do it again.”

To this, Rould rumbled out a laugh. He turned, speaking to them from over his shoulder, “I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised to find we are fighting on the same side this time around.” He stepped forward, waving for them to follow. 

Xion and Roxas were still looking to him for direction. One glance told him neither of them were sold on trusting Rould. Good. He wasn’t either. But hearing him out wouldn’t hurt. He could have some information. And besides, of all Organization XIII, Riku remembered Rould being one of the more honest of the bunch. 

Maybe they couldn’t trust his intentions, but they could trust his actions. He wasn’t lying to them. But he was certainly hiding something. Whatever it was, they just had to hope it was nothing vital, nothing they couldn’t complete their quest without. 

Still, Riku stepped to follow Rould, leading Xion and Roxas forward. Whatever may come, they would at least face it together. He felt assured in that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun dun DUHHH! 
> 
> Things are getting spicy in here!! And we still have like four chapters to gooooo.
> 
> I'm excited ~_^


	19. Unease to Nightmare

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: Here you go guys! Your regularly scheduled chapter that is 100% on time!
> 
> Readers: Um... Ari, you missed a week-
> 
> Me: _Silence! Don't you know time doesn't mean anything anymore!!!_
> 
> ...
> 
> Anyway, the chapter this week is a bit longer than the others, so enjoy.

Rould led them up all the way up the building, to floors that had less and less people wandering about, until they were the only ones around, then he led them up another flight of stairs. On the empty floor, he glanced around, made sure no one could overhear them, before turning to the three keyblade wielders. 

The three had kept their distance, untrusting in his motives and his actions. If Rould noticed this, and no doubt he did, he didn’t comment on it.

All he said was, “Tell me, how long has it been since the Keyblade War?” 

Riku blinked, saw Roxas and Xion share a look beside him. “It’s… been a year,” Xion answered carefully. 

“Hmm,” Rould pressed a hand to his chin, tapped it thoughtfully. “That means time must be speeding up again. Not a good sign.” 

“Are you going to spout nonsense or are you going to explain?” Roxas snapped. 

Rould turned a smirk toward him. “As pleasant as always, Roxas. It’s good to meet again.”

Roxas waved his hand. “Answers?” 

“No time for catching up?” Rould snorted. “Perhaps you’re right. If it’s only been a year in the waking world, then we’re quickly running out of time here. And besides, I’m expecting a companion of mine to arrive soon. We probably only have enough time for a few questions, so ask them wisely.” 

“Where is Sora?” It was the first question Riku thought to ask, the most important one. If Rould knew anything, then let him know at least this.

It was, unfortunately, not too surprising though when Rould shook his head. “I’m afraid I don’t have that exact information. A lot of people in this city have been searching for him for some time now. None of them have been able to find him.”

“We’ve been looking nonstop for two days now with no luck,” Roxas growled.

To this, Rould let out a rough laugh. “Days? Yozora has been searching for Sora for four months now.”

_Months._

Even if Nix had mentioned that nobody had seen or heard from Sora in a while, Riku hadn’t expected it to have been such a long time. What had happened to Sora in that length of time? Was he trapped somewhere? Scared? Alone? Four months was such a long time….

A rumble caught Riku’s attention, drew it to the windows, to clouds gathering outside. A storm, hovering over the city. Sparks lit the clouds, another growl of thunder reaching them. Riku watched the storm roll in, felt the thunder in his bones, in the subtle shifting of the building in the wind. He felt he understood that storm and all the roiling energy within it. 

It would have been easy to slip into despair, to let his thoughts spiral out of control, but Xion’s voice pulled him back, grounded him in a way that was perhaps unexpected, but comforting, a pillar of light in the growing dark. She stepped forward, a slight frown to her lips, and said, “Yozora. Is he the city’s regent…?” 

“Ah, you’ve heard of him, have you?” Rould’s smile slipped into a smirk. “Yes, that would be Yozora. He rules this city, its military force, and its politics through an undeniable force of will and sheer, unparalleled strength.” 

“Yeah, we know,” a little shiver came over Roxas and he touched his arm, an unconscious movement, the ghost of a painful grimace in his face. “We had a bit of a run in with him.”

To this, Rould’s smirk fell away, something troubled about his face, something tense in the way he leaned toward the three. “Did you now? And how did he seem?”

“Crazed.” Roxas said shortly. He bit his lip, seemed to think carefully, then added, “Scared.” 

“Sad.” Xion said as well.

Rould turned to Riku, expecting something from him. Riku thought, but he didn’t really know how Yozora had seemed. Lost, maybe? Defeated? 

He shook his head. “You really don’t know where Sora is, right?”

Rould shook his head. “I don’t. And we’ve been looking long enough that I don’t think he’s anywhere we could find, if that makes sense.” The former nobody gestured outward, but didn’t seem to be motioning to anything at all. “This is a dream, after all. Time doesn’t mean much here and neither does place. When the time comes, Sora will make his appearance. Just as you three have made your appearance right when you were needed.” 

_That makes sense._ Riku bit his lip, frustrated he hadn’t thought of that before. Time and place did mean less in a dream. It was something to think of, something to remember. But it still didn’t answer the question. 

“Where did Sora go? And why?”

“I believe he was taken, actually.” 

Alarm had Riku tensing. He looked to Roxas and Xion for their reactions, saw shock and frustration on their faces. _“Taken?”_

Rould nodded, seemingly not having noticed the keyblade wielders’ reactions. “By someone in a black coat, specifically. And before you ask, no, it’s not anyone I’ve associated with previously from Organization XIII. This was someone else.” 

“Who?” Riku pressed, but Rould shook his head.

“If I knew that answer, then I’d know where to find Sora.” He paused as another rumble of thunder broke through the conversation. It was even darker out now, the storm fully enveloping them. “I hope you remember we are running out of time. You are choosing your questions wisely, right?”

Roxas glowered unhappily. “If you’re not willing to just tell us what we need to know, then don’t question what information we ask about.” He growled. “Why are you looking for him anyway?” 

Rould’s smirk returned, but it wasn’t the same as before. It wasn’t confident and sly. In fact, Riku thought maybe there was something quite sad about this smirk. It was false, forced. A front placed between the former Organization members, between once-allies, once-enemies that didn’t quite know how to navigate the space between them. Behind that smirk, there was something painful.

“I was ordered to help in the search by Yozora. And so, I’ve been looking for four months, just as everyone else has.” 

_Ordered?_

Riku put a hand on his hip, glared at Rould closely. The suit he’d noticed before was definitely something a man of status would wear, or maybe a man who worked for a man of status. It was stylish while being practical and Riku was frustrated he hadn’t noticed that before. The shock of seeing Rould at all had distracted him, just as everything else about this world was distracting. 

He shifted, focused on his mission, on the information he needed. But perhaps, the information he needed wasn’t exactly the information he wanted at the moment. He’d been asking about Sora. But those questions weren’t getting him anywhere. So what would help him reach his ultimate goal? Nobody seemed to know where Sora was. Fine. What questions could he ask to help him discover the clues he needed to track the missing keyblade wielder down? 

A thought crossed his mind, the one thing they had been questioning always, yet pushing aside, always saying that it wasn’t important to their mission. Instead, he asked, “What is the true nature of this world?” When he asked his question, Rould paused, seemed to take in his words carefully, one at a time. When he said nothing, Riku continued, “Even if it is in a dream, this world isn’t like any other I’ve visited before. So what is its core? What’s actually going on here?” 

“Ah,” Rould put a finger to his chin. “Now you’re asking the more interesting questions.” He closed his eyes, seemed to think, if only briefly. “I can’t speak to the true nature of this world, its purpose, or its reason to be. But I will tell you this: Yozora is a fascinating man. He has a deep connection to this world, especially since it’s fallen to dreams. In fact, I dare say he’s the most powerful man I’ve ever worked with. Stronger than Xemnas and Xehanort. At least, while he’s in this world, he is.” He lowered his hand. “There are doors that even keyblade wielders know better than to open, but Yozora found one of those doors and he peeked inside.” 

Even if Riku didn’t know exactly what Rould may be talking about, he did know about doors that needed to be kept closed. He’d peeked behind one of those doors himself, had been on the other side of the Door to Darkness, had seen just how such an experience could change a person. But it seemed unlikely that Yozora could have found one of these doors, much less opened it. He wasn’t a keyblade wielder. Or, at least, Riku didn’t think he was. But maybe… maybe that was what they were missing. It would explain some things. It didn’t explain everything, but it was a convenient answer. 

And so, he asked, “Yozora’s not a keyblade wielder?” Rould shook his head. No surprise there, but it was nice to have the confirmation. “Then how was he able to open the door?”

“That is a curiosity, isn’t it?” Rould shook his head. “I’m not too sure, honestly. It would seem to me that perhaps someone opened it for him. But who that person could be, I don’t know. Or,” the former nobody raised a hand before Riku could consider what his words meant, “perhaps this world simply opened it for him. Maybe it chose him to be its conduit, its heart. Because make no mistake. Yozora _is_ the heart of this world now.”

“Now I know you’re messing with us.” Riku kept an edge to his voice, even as he tried to think over what Rould had said. “A person can’t be a world’s heart.”

“No?” Rould paused, let the word linger in the air. If he was trying to be dramatic, all he did was wear on Riku’s already thin nerves. As if sensing this, he held up his arms again, a gesture for peace, before returning a hand to his chin. “Have you ever considered what a Princess of Heart is to their world? How their world seems to bend to their wishes? How it revolves around them, even if in small, seemingly insignificant details?” He paused as Roxas and Xion glanced to each other, clearly confused. 

Neither of them had had much experience with Princesses of Heart. But Riku did. Riku knew one. Kairi had an air around her. Wherever she went, she had a presence that followed. He’d always chalked it up to her pure light. But maybe there was something more to it. Something in the world that made it bend to her, that her light called to the will of the world, that her heart beat the same as the world’s.

As if completely oblivious to Riku’s internal struggle, Rould simply shrugged. “This situation is decidedly different, but it’s the same concept. This world bends to the will of one man, and that man is this city’s regent, Yozora. When he calls it to heel, it obeys. When he loses control, the world spins just a bit more chaotically. Yozora’s found a way to warp the world’s dream to his own. In a sense, we’re simply living out a part of his nightmare. When things started falling apart in Cathedra Veri, Yozora’s seat of power, the rest of the world began decaying as well.”

A realization dawned on Riku suddenly, the pieces lining up neatly. They always had lined up. He’d just never noticed. “Sora,” he said, Rould raising an eyebrow at him. For the first time since meeting the former nobody, Riku turned away from him, faced to Roxas and Xion. Xion looked at him expectantly, but Roxas shifted toward Rould, still untrusting, even more so now with Riku’s back to him. But that didn’t matter. What mattered was Riku now understood what was happening. Or at least, some small part of it. “Sora’s a keyblade wielder,” he said, his words rushed, his tongue tripping to get them out, “his place is to create balance in a world. That’s why he was with Yozora. He was keeping Yozora stable, and therefore this entire world. And now that he’s gone, that’s why this world is falling apart. Yozora’s going mad and the world is following suit. Which means—”

“Whoever took Sora did this on purpose.” Roxas finished. Riku shut his mouth, nodded once. 

“But… why?” Xion muttered. 

“We don’t know,” Rould’s voice called the attention of the three keyblade wielders, but even Roxas had stopped glaring with the same intensity as before. The former nobody cast a grimacing glance out the window, to the abandoned streets below. As empty as it was, the world looked like even more of a nightmarish landscape. “As I said, I’ve been in this world for some time now. Its darkness has been gathering for a long time, but it wasn’t until about two and a half years ago that things started to change. The nightmare was peaceful. Until it wasn’t. Until the nightmare started swallowing people up, forcing them to wake, or perhaps just destroying them.” Rould shook his head. “It’s almost as if someone wants this world to wake, and they’re doing everything they can to reach the nightmare’s conclusion.”

“Can we dispel the nightmare without waking the world?” Xion asked quickly, worrying her fingers back and forth. “Or maybe even wake the world before the nightmare ends?”

Rould shook his head. “It’s far too late at this point. This world _will_ be consumed by the nightmares. It’s only a matter of time.”

“But, Sora can—”

“He’s right, it’s too late,” Riku was surprised at Roxas’s statement, at his glower and his glance at the window. There came an anxious light to his eyes as he cast a glance outside, to the storm still sweeping over the city. It had darkened the skies so much there was no more light from the sun, only a faint ring at the horizon. “We’ve seen just how far into the nightmare Yozora’s fallen. If he really is controlling this world and its nightmares, then it would take too much to reverse it, even if we found Sora.”

“Right. But that still leaves the question.” Riku clenched his fists at his side, frustrated. Even after all this information, even as he understood just what was happening in this world, Sora’s purpose in it and what had happened to him, he still didn’t know enough. _“Where is Sora?”_

_“Rould!”_

The desperate call had everyone pausing, turning toward the man who was rushing toward them. He slid to a halt, realizing Rould wasn’t alone, Riku taking his momentary distraction to evaluate him. He was dressed haphazardly, as if he had been suddenly tossed onto the street. A smattering of hair grew along his chin and his eyes were hollow. Even the most unkempt of people wouldn’t envy this man.

Those hollow eyes grew wide upon seeing Riku. “Y-you…!” 

“Taro,” Rould’s voice was confident and loud, snapping the man’s attention away. “What’s happened?”

The man, Taro, blinked, then stood a little taller. “It’s the Revolutionaries. They’ve staged an attack to the south, drawn most of the militia away. But there’s something happening to the north. I saw Yozora, Aegis, and Magia headed that way. Something’s going on at the city’s heart.”

“Oh?” Rould stepped toward the windows, glanced across the city. “How very interesting….” 

A spark lit Riku’s palm and he also turned to the window, half expecting the regent to appear just on the other side of the glass. Thankfully, there was nothing, just an empty city and the reflection of those standing around him. In that reflection, he saw Roxas and Xion sharing a look, and that Taro was glaring at his back. Riku turned over his shoulder, met the man’s gaze, cautious, waiting.

Taro glanced him over once, a slow tilt in his chin. Then, he melted a little, relaxed into his heels, smiled. 

“Who’s Aegis and Magia?” Xion’s question caught Taro’s attention, left Riku free to examine him a bit closer. Just who was he? How did he know Rould?

“They’re Yozora’s right hands,” Taro said. “They’ve been shadowing him even more than usual.” 

“For good reason,” Rould growled. “He’d burn down the rest of this city if they didn’t reign him in.”

Taro frowned deeply, but said nothing, letting Rould continue to stare deeply into his own reflection. 

Instead, he once again turned to Riku. “I’m sorry, we haven’t been introduced yet. My name is Taro.”

Riku paused briefly, but eventually, he nodded. “My name’s Riku. These are my friends, Xion and Roxas.” The other keyblade wielders turned at their names, pausing in a whispered conversation to stare at Taro, waiting for his response. 

He looked them over carefully, just as he had done to Riku, and nodded, once. “So… all of you are friends with Sora, aren’t you?”

They didn’t move. Riku wasn’t even sure if he was breathing.

No doubt Taro noticed, but he didn’t point it out, turning away. “If you’re here, then I’m guessing you don’t know where he is either?”

There was a moment, a pause, a beat where nobody dared to move, the question and everything behind it hanging between them. Then, Xion smiled and strode toward Taro with purpose, with a smile. The man looked up at her, a bit surprised, a bit wary, but didn’t step away as she stood before him. “We’re looking for him. If you know something that could help us, then we could use any information we can get.” 

Taro startled a little, then laughed, breathy and quiet. “I truly wish I could help you. Unfortunately, it’s as if he simply vanished into thin air. Nobody’s seen hair or tale of him.”

“Other than rumors about the Revolutionaries.” Rould said suddenly.

Taro frowned deeply, crossed his arms. “We’ve already exhausted those leads. Not that Yozora cared to listen. He burned another base just yesterday. No survivors from what I heard.” 

Something painful burned in Riku’s stomach at the news. But, in this world, no survivors didn’t mean people losing their lives. It meant people waking up, people finally freed of the nightmare. As much as he knew this, as much as he believed it, he still pressed a hand to his heart, felt a lingering ache, remembering Nix’s laugh and Jiyura’s appraising look. 

“Speaking of Yozora,” Rould was still staring out the window, “our friends here have had a fairly severe run-in with him.”

At the news, Taro jolted as if shocked. “Are you all right?” 

“Minor scrapes and bruises. We’re fine.” Xion hurried to say as Roxas scowled deeply, running his hand over his arm again. 

The man let out a breath. “That’s a minor miracle. Yozora can be… dangerous, I’m sad to say.” 

As distracted as Riku was keeping an eye on Rould and thinking carefully over all the former nobody had said, he didn’t miss the way Xion frowned, the way she stepped a little closer to Taro. Of all of them, he was surprised she was the one to be so focused, though perhaps he wasn’t surprised that she was the one to reach out to Taro, to put a hand on his arm and offer him just a little touch of support. “Do you… know Yozora well?” 

To this, Taro smiled. It wasn’t a happy or joyful smile. It was one full of pain. Regret. “Once upon a time, I did.” He shook his head, let his gaze drift downward. Riku glanced to Roxas and Xion, both of whom were regarding Taro carefully. Even Rould paused in his musings to turn toward Taro. “I was once a captain of the militia, but no longer. I… I couldn’t stand by and watch what was happening anymore. The Yozora I followed was a kind young man at heart. Far too stubborn for his own good, sometimes, but at his core, he was good. And I suppose, he still is.” Taro’s smile had faded the more he spoke and now all that was left was a thin line, a trickle of worry pulling at his cheeks. “When Sora was taken, something… changed. I don’t know what happened. It was almost like a spell. He just… wasn’t what he used to be. He’s become colder, angry. He won’t listen to anyone, not even his right hands. He left the city to burn. Generators started to show signs of failing and he didn’t seem to care. All he wanted to do was find the man in the black robe.” He bit his lip, worried it for a moment, then looked to the three keyblade wielders. “I thought it was because he wanted to find Sora, and I think that’s still part of it, but there’s something else. That man did something to Yozora, I know he did. What, I’m not sure. But he’s different. 

“I couldn’t support him anymore. I left with several others from the militia and the magicians. We’re doing all we can to keep the city from falling, but I’m sure you’ve noticed things are getting… worse. The monsters are appearing in the city more frequently, the Boundary’s shrinking. When I left, the generators were so bad we were expecting them to fail at any time.”

To this, Rould scoffed, glared back out the window. “I stayed just to keep that very thing from happening. But times are hard. This city is falling apart. I’m afraid there’s not much more either of us can do at this point.” 

Again, Riku glanced to the others, saw their suspicion had worn away into apprehension. “What… what happens if the generators fail?” Riku asked Taro. 

Taro gave him a confused look, surprised out of his sorrow, but it was Rould who answered. “When the generators fail, _when_ not _if_ , then the ring of light that holds back the darkness will disappear and the shadow will consume the city.” 

The former nobody met Riku’s gaze, let his words sink in. If the darkness was a manifestation for the world’s nightmares, then when the generators failed, it would signal the end of the nightmare. It would be the catalyst for the destruction of this dream world. 

It was just another reminder that they were quickly running out of time, that they didn’t have these few moments to spare, to stand around and interrogate Rould and Taro. They had to get going.

But where?

“Ah!” Rould’s voice surprised Riku in how joyful he sounded. The former nobody glanced over his shoulder, gestured for Riku to join him. Riku did slowly, carefully, following Rould’s finger when he pointed to something on the streets below. Riku had to squint to see it clearly, but as he stared, he saw a flicker of movement, caught something in the corner of his eye. 

A bat, brightly colored, with dark wings and red eyes.

A nightmare.

It zipped along the streets and disappeared down an alley, but just as it did, more nightmares manifested, followed its path into the city. 

North. Toward the city’s heart. 

Exactly where Taro had said Yozora had gone. 

Slowly, Riku looked up at Rould. The former nobody was grinning. 

_He was waiting,_ Riku realized. _He was staring out that window, waiting for it to appear._

He had known all this time. He’d even told them, saying he was expecting his companion to arrive. And yet, when Taro had arrived, it didn’t seem to be something they’d planned. Taro had arrived bearing news he clearly thought Rould would be surprised to hear. But, somehow Rould had known, had expected it. Had let the keyblade wielders waste away time, waiting for when Taro would arrive. Had he known, too, what the keyblade wielders would ask? What he would say in return? How much of it had he actually anticipated, how much had he known beforehand?

_How_ had he known? 

There were many things Riku wanted to say, things he wanted to do. Both he and Rould knew he didn’t have time for that. 

If nightmares were appearing, then it had to mean something. After all, the only monsters they’d seen were the ones from the darkness when they’d first arrived and the soldiers who had been consumed by the nightmare of the world. If real nightmares were manifesting now, then it had to mean something. And they had to take advantage while they could.

He glared at Rould, told him, _I don’t trust you._ Rould took his glare and smirked, turned back to the window with his hands clasped behind his back. He said nothing. Perhaps there was nothing more to say. 

Riku spun to his friends, who were still busy interrogating Taro. “Xion! Roxas! We have to go!” 

There was only a moment’s hesitation between the two, a glance, a worried look, before they hurried to follow behind him. He rushed for the stairs, aware of Taro yelling after them. There were things he wanted to tell Taro. Mostly, not to trust Rould. But if the end was coming, then it wouldn’t matter. He could only hope Taro would wake to a better world, as with all the others who inhabited this nightmare. 

They didn’t have time to waste worrying about these people. The simple truth was they couldn’t change their fates. The only fate they could change was their own and Sora’s. And now, they had a clue to follow.

On the way down the stairs, Riku rushed to explain what he had seen, what it meant. Xion and Roxas listened, though whether they understood or not, he couldn’t quite tell. But he couldn’t stop to try to help them understand. They didn’t have time for anything else. They simply hurried back down the staircase, rushed past the soldiers guarding the exit, and ran out onto the street, following the path the nightmares had taken.

In taking those first few steps into the city, Riku summoned Braveheart, felt Xion and Roxas call their keyblades as well. He had a sinking suspicion that soon enough, they would be facing the man in the black coat. Just like all the rest, he intended to win that fight, save Sora, and leave the world before it awakened. 

He intended to make it back home, and that was a promise that kept his heart beating resolutely even as they rushed toward danger. 

\- - - 

The empty streets rung with an eerie familiarity. Most of the sleeping worlds Riku had visited before had been like these streets, mostly empty, occupied by only a few lost souls and the memories of those who once dwelled there. Despite how much he recognized of this world in his past experiences, it did not settle his nerves. Something much greater was happening here and he was only playing his role in that. Perhaps Sora had been summoned here to awaken this world only to have his path diverted by someone else’s hand. Perhaps they were the ones called to this world for that purpose. 

It did not matter. 

What mattered was the moving shadows around them, shadows that curled and twisted and burst into vicious monsters that Riku knew all too well. As the city spiraled deeper into its own nightmare, the nightmares Riku had once fought clawed up through the streets, blocking their path.

Knowing well what they were, Riku led the way. He slashed through them, finding they felt different than they had before. Perhaps because now his physical body was the one facing these monsters, not his sleeping spirit. Beside him, Xion and Roxas fought tentatively, never having faced these creatures before. Riku didn’t worry about them. They were strong enough to defend themselves and they dispatched the nightmares with the same efficiency as they did anything else. 

With their progress slowed by the appearance of the nightmares, it took them a while to finally see just what the creatures were gathering around. 

Along the street, Riku turned to see an open square not far from them, the clouds swirling ominously over a building across the roadway from them. It seemed the monsters had damaged it some, a few of the windows shattered, the doors thrown open. The metal and glass frame of a large number four leaned against the side of the building, half crumpled from the impact of its long fall. Atop the building, the numbers one and zero blinked with a struggling red glare. As they approached, there sounded a horrid creaking as the one suddenly arced downward and broke free from the building.

“Look out!” Riku stood in front of Xion and Roxas, summoning his barrier just as it crashed to the ground before them, shattering and flinging glass and dust outward. 

Once it had settled, Riku dismissed the barrier, glanced to see if there was anything else sneaking up on them. The streets were abandoned. No sign of anymore nightmares or soldiers or anyone unfortunate enough to get caught in the middle of everything.

“Top of the building?” Roxas asked, to which Xion nodded. 

Riku paused, evaluated the safest way up to the building, trying to find all its weakest points, all the places where nightmares could be lurking, waiting for them. Beside him, Roxas hefted his keyblades, took a step to lead the way, Riku realizing Xion was doing the same and hurrying to follow. They managed a single step before Riku felt the presence of something at his back, turned, lifted his keyblade, expecting to face a nightmare.

A flash, and something heavy crashed into his keyblade, something that had his heels digging into the earth, flailing for purchase. When he found it, he lifted his eyes, found himself gazing behind flashing lens, glasses glazed over, expression hidden. It took him only a moment to recognize the figure. He had been one of the silhouettes standing beside Yozora at the Revolutionaries’ base. Which meant the other one couldn’t be far behind—

Something surged past Riku, the clash of weapons ripping along the street. 

“Riku!” From one step to the next, Xion was there, driving his attacker back. She took a step between them, held her keyblade ready. “Go! Roxas and I will hold these guys!”

For another moment, Riku hesitated, glanced to see Roxas facing another man wielding two rapiers. A flash of magic had the keyblade wielder rushing to avoid the attack, but keeping Riku covered. He didn’t have a chance to catch Roxas’s gaze, as wrapped in the fight as he was. But he didn’t need to. Somehow, he knew what Roxas would say to him. 

_Well? Get going!_

These two could handle this. They’d meet up with him when they could. He had to do what he had to. Just as they were trusting him, he had to trust them.

And he did.

Without another word, Riku braced himself, leaped for the building.

\- - -

The world expanded out around him. Riku hadn’t realized just how big the city was, nor just how small this world had become. In the growing shroud of the storm, he could so easily pick out the ring of light that encircled everything, the light which they had crossed when first entering the world. 

Why this was the first thing he noticed upon reaching the top, he didn’t know. All he knew was it struck him to see the whole expanse of this world, all there was left, all that the nightmare still held.

He saw this first when he should have noticed the rising crystal formation at the center of the building’s roof. At a glance, it reminded Riku of his ice magic, all jaded edges and sparkling spines. It took up a significant portion of the roof, vaguely circular, like a malformed crown. At its center, it took a strange shape. In the dark, Riku almost thought it must have been a trick of his mind, a mirage from his heart. But the more he looked, the more he recognized the form that the crystal was carved to. 

He knew the lanky limbs, could imagine the carefree tilt of a head, the smile that lit his chest on fire. 

Sora.

It had to be Sora. 

That had to be why his heart had stopped, why his ears were ringing with a missing laugh, why his eyes refused to see anything else.

He’d found Sora.

He’d done it.

“You.”

The voice startled Riku, made him blink, tore him from the trance. Yanked him back into the nightmare. Standing in front of the crystal, Yozora loomed. In his hands, he held his sword and his crossbow loosely, his chin turned down, staring at Riku under his lashes. At the regent’s back, a sword swung like a pendulum, like a heartbeat, the only movement between the two of them. Along with the lone regent, heaps were gathered around the roof. Lumps that Riku didn’t quite recognize until he got a little closer, then he was frozen in shock at what he saw. Bodies. Men and women whose forms were twisted and monstrous. Wisps of darkness were wicking off of them, the bodies melting into dark sludge. 

He didn’t need to know exactly what had happened to understand. Yozora would already be on edge from the fight. Timing wasn’t on Riku’s side. It would appear as if he were the last enemy standing, the last foe to fall before the end of the fight. He didn’t know how to convince Yozora that he wasn’t an enemy, that he wasn’t there for a fight. 

Riku took a breath, glanced to Sora. Whatever that crystal was, he was sure his keyblade could break Sora free. He just needed the chance to do so, though he had a feeling the regent wasn’t going to afford him that. Riku recognized the dangerous gleam in his eyes, realized that he was facing a man quite capable of doing him great harm. 

Slowly, he held Braveheart ready, kept his stance tense but unmoving. “Yozora!” He called, the regent’s eyebrows tilting down just a little more, “Listen, I’m not your enemy!”

Yozora snorted. “And I’m just supposed to believe that?” He shook his head. “I haven’t survived this long believing just anyone who tells me that.”

“I don’t know how to convince you otherwise,” Riku said carefully, couldn’t help but glance to Sora once more. “I’m here to save Sora. Please, let me pass! I can help him!”

A second passed between them. It was only a second, but it seemed to last an eternity. Longer than just a heartbeat, more than just a breath, heavy with something silent, something that didn’t need words to be known.

Then, Yozora’s hands tightened on his weapons and he aimed his crossbow right at Riku. “I know you’re with that madman,” he said, his voice measured, quiet, dripping with accusation, “and I’m not going to let you do anymore harm to anyone else.”

Riku set his teeth, felt as the world rippled around him, suddenly knew this was a fight he couldn’t possibly win.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Worry not, we are back on our regularly scheduled updates again. Expect the next three chapters to come out as per usual. 
> 
> Not going to lie, I'm not very happy with how this one turned out. Next week's should be better, hopefully.


	20. Nightmare to Conflict

Facing against an opponent who had already proven his capabilities once always set Riku on edge. He’d faced Ansem time and time again, having lost and won more than once over. In the times when he’d lost, his friends had filled the gaps, had saved him when he hadn’t been able to save himself. This time around, Xoin and Roxas were fighting their own battles and he was alone. If anyone was going to save Sora, it had to be him.

Failure wasn’t an option. Even if the odds were stacked against him. Everything was on the line. 

So he stood, waiting, as Yozora sized him up from the scope of his crossbow. Around them, the remnants of his previous battle were flickering away, little spirals of darkness coiling up into the sky, the bodies disappearing, leaving just the two of them, standing there, facing each other. 

“I don’t have time to waste,” the regent’s voice held a note of impatience, “tell me how to reverse this and I won’t have to hurt you.”

“What? Me? I’m not the one doing this!” Riku shifted his stance, set his feet just a bit wider. “I can help him if you would just let me!”

“You’re not taking another step closer.” The sword behind Yozora stopped moving. Riku took a breath, steadied himself. Waited, for the inevitable. “Tell me what I want to know or I’ll make you.”

There was nothing Riku could say that would change Yozora’s mind. So he stood, waiting. 

Yozora’s eyes narrowed, ever so slightly. “Fine, then.”

This time, Riku felt as the air shifted. As something in the world became unbalanced, as Yozora acted, slipped into the space right next to where the keyblade wielder stood. Braveheart came up to clash with the regent’s sword as it appeared as if from thin air. Sparks lit the growing darkness of the storm. Yozora’s crossbow shifted, took the familiar form of a blaster. Before he could turn the weapon toward Riku, he summoned fire to his fingertips, let it spiral toward Yozora. 

From one blink to the next, Yozora was standing away from Riku, then across the rooftop as he tried to avoid the seeking flames of the dark firaga. As before, Riku felt the threads of the world pulled, the dream fading away from one moment to the next as Yozora slipped from the world into another only to reappear in this one. 

This feeling…

It was familiar, though Riku couldn’t place why he knew it. 

His sudden ability to track Yozora did give him one advantage: now he knew where to look to when Yozora disappeared. Unlike last time, Riku found himself keeping pace with Yozora’s blinding attacks, readied just as he reappeared to catch them on Braveheart, magic serving as his counterattack. In return, Yozora leaped away from Riku, stood back and summoned reticles from which lasers rained down on him, Riku dodging out of the way just in time, feeling the pulling apart of the world as Yozora’s second sword appeared beside him, clashing with Braveheart yet again. 

“You’re stronger now,” Yozora commented.

Riku tossed the sword aside, felt it return to Yozora as the regent stood, watching him. “I have someone I’m fighting for. I can’t lose this time.”

To this, Yozora scoffed. “It seems you and I are in similar circumstances then. I have someone I promised to save and unfortunately for you, I don’t intend to lose this fight.” 

“Talk is cheap!” Riku hefted Braveheart, flexed his hand. “Either fight me or let me help Sora!” 

Yozora growled suddenly, disappearing then reappearing once again. Anticipating the attack, Riku swung into the space where Yozora had been, only to realize he was no longer there, the regent appearing behind him before he could react. The feint was a good one, Riku had to admit, his own overconfidence resulting in a searing pain along his back as Yozora’s blade cut along his jacket.

Riku hissed, his body rebelling, the hair on the back of his neck rising just in time for him to roll out of the way of another volley of lasers. He tried to get back to his feet, found them too late as once again Yozora appeared in front of him, his blaster held before him. Riku had just enough time to knock it out of the way and summon his fire again.

This time, as fire swirled at his fingertips, Yozora twisted, trying to dodge away, realized at the same time as Riku that he was simply too close to move out of the way. The dark firaga raced up Yozora’s arm, raked along his shoulder. The regent’s teeth set in a snarl and he seemed to lean forward, to fall into a space that Riku didn’t see. A heartbeat later, he reappeared several yards away, gripping his shoulder, scorched by his attack. 

Riku hardly noticed his successful hit. He was too focused on what he had seen, how Yozora had moved. He’d fallen into the space in front of Riku, fallen out of realty, into another one.

He wasn’t just disappearing and reappearing. 

Because, as Riku was very suddenly reminded, this was a dream world. 

And Yozora was dropping in and out of it. Diving from one dream to the next, only doing so within the same dream of the same world. 

Yozora readied another attack, shaking off his injury, as Riku stood there, his mind racing. Braveheart gleamed as reticles appeared behind Yozora, their red lights dancing along his keyblade. Those lights snapped him back into the fight, caught him just in time for him to roll out of the way of Yozora’s next attack. 

Even with his body participating in the fight, Riku found his mind racing, amazed by the idea that Yozora was diving in and out of the dream so easily. It had been an entire process for him and Sora to dive through the dreams of the sleeping worlds, but Yozora stepped across barriers as easily as one might cross a street. Was this just part of his influence over the world? His power as the world’s heart?

A sharp twist of the dream around Riku brought him back to the fight, him throwing up Braveheart just in time to parry Yozora’s attack, ducking away when he tried to counter. A frustrated noise left the regent’s mouth. 

“Would you please listen to me?” Riku asked, spun out of the way as Yozora’s second sword appeared through the dream, slashing toward him. “I’m not your enemy!” 

“Enough!” More reticles appeared, far too many for Riku to counter. 

He set his teeth, tensed, dodged as Yozora suddenly disappeared, just missed his sword. 

The regent snarled, set his feet wide. “I said ENOUGH!” 

The threads of the dream around Riku throbbed as Yozora summoned something, something that grew and grew and grew, something of hard edges and an intimidating figure. It looked a bit like a machine, a bit like a person, a bit like a nightmare. Whatever it was, it stood several feet taller than Riku, striking an intimidating mechanical figure above him.

The sight of it stunned Riku, caught him off guard just enough that he didn’t have time to dodge, that he felt the attack coming and just barely raised Braveheart before the machine crashed into him, sending him flying off his feet and skidding along the rooftop. 

His breath knocked from his lungs, Riku lay on the roof for a moment, gasping. His head rolled and he searched for Braveheart, couldn’t find it nearby. 

What he saw instead, what he was reaching for, was Sora. He was so close. He was right there. Riku had finally found him. 

And yet, it hadn’t mattered.

A boot planted in Riku’s chest, Yozora looming over him, the crossbow in his face. 

The regent’s eyes were cold. 

He gazed down at Riku with no emotion, no understanding, no mercy. Riku tried to push the regent off of him, but he only pressed down harder, Riku gasping for air, unable to fill his lungs. And still, Yozora simply looked down at him. 

“I told you,” he said simply, “I wasn’t going to lose. Now, you are going to tell me how to reverse this or I will fire.” 

“You— can’t,” Riku laid back, fought for breath. “Only— I can—” Even as he spoke, there was no believing in his Yozora’s eyes. 

“Very well.” A reticle appeared above Yozora. Riku refused to let his fear show, refused to give up. When he reached for Braveheart, he felt nothing come to his call. He couldn’t concentrate enough for magic either. When he looked up, he saw Sora there, so close. If only he could reach just a little more…!

“Farewell.”

Riku closed his eyes. Saw Sora in his mind. Saw his smile, heard his laugh, a slight tilt of the head, a teasing comment.

Him, on the beach. The sunset bathing over him. Waiting for Riku to take a seat next to him. 

Always waiting, always there.

This was what he wanted to remember, in the last moments. So he let his heart remember, let Sora’s warmth fill him. 

_“Sora.”_ He said, and he accepted the end.

He waited.

And waited.

But the end did not come.

When he looked, Yozora had lowered the crossbow. His gaze was no longer on Riku. It was on Sora. So close, Riku could see the gleam of his eyes. Except… that wasn’t just the light reflecting off the crystal. There was water dripping along Sora’s face. 

Tears.

The sight had transfixed Yozora. It seemed he’d completely forgotten that Riku was even there. But slowly, very slowly, his focus returned and he looked down at Riku. 

There was silence between them. In that silence, Riku felt something pass between them. Something he didn’t quite understand. The regent was looking at him carefully, as if trying to see him in a different light, trying to see him as a different person, maybe trying for the first time to see who he really was. 

“You,” the regent paused, glanced again to Sora, “you have very pretty eyes. Like jewels.” 

The comparison made Riku’s stomach drop. When the regent stepped away from him, let him breathe, Riku pushed himself up, gazed cautiously at Yozora. 

“Sora… said that once.” It had been a while ago. Something he’d muttered under his breath, as if in passing. Perhaps he’d thought Riku hadn’t heard it. But those words had sung in Riku’s heart for days afterward. 

_You have eyes like jewels._

Yozora considered Riku carefully. Looked once more to Sora. 

Then, he shook his head.

“This isn’t right.” 

Sensing a change, a chance, his only chance, Riku sat up on his knees. “I’m not here to hurt Sora. And I didn’t do this to him. But I can save him. Please, let me help him.”

Immediately, Yozora’s eyes narrowed. He appraised Riku carefully. Twisted his grip on his crossbow. “Tell me your name.”

While Riku didn’t appreciate the demanding nature of the question, he recognized progress when he saw it. “Riku.”

“Riku,” Yozora didn’t say his name in a flattering way. But he also didn’t spit it out like poison. “Tell me what’s happened to Sora.”

“I don’t know. All I know is that I think I can help him.”

“How?”

Riku pressed a hand to his heart. “I have a special power. To call out to people’s hearts. It’s… almost like my job. Sora is very special to me. His heart and mine are connected. If I call out to him, he’ll answer. He’ll wake up. He always has before.” 

Yozora considered this carefully, though from one look, Riku could tell he didn’t quite know what he meant. Still, at least he was listening now. Riku knew if the regent attacked again that he’d stand no chance. At this point, he was still out of breath and his fingers shook at the thought of parrying another blow from his swords. Meanwhile, Yozora seemed nearly unfazed, the only damage to him a slightly singed sleeve. 

So Riku didn’t dare move as Yozora thought, as he appraised the boy before him. 

Then, slowly, he shifted, took a ready grip on his weapons. “I won’t let you hurt Sora. He was in my care for more than a year and I’ve been searching for him for a long time now. I’m not going to allow him to be hurt anymore.”

“I’d never hurt Sora. You have to trust me.”

“Sorry, but I can’t afford to simply trust you.”

Riku searched Yozora for something, some slight give, some tell he was being convinced. But he found nothing, only cold steel and an iron focus. Still, he couldn’t give up. Not when he was so close.

“If you can’t trust me,” he said, “then trust Sora.” 

Again, there was a pause. 

Heavy. Quiet.

Then, Yozora hefted his crossbow up, onto his shoulder. Nodded. Only once.

It was all Riku needed. He’d take this chance while he still had it.

He spun toward Sora, called Braveheart to him, demanded its presence when it hesitated. His hand arched outward, the keyblade falling into his grip. At the corner of his eye, he saw a surprised lift of Yozora’s expression, as if he had recognized the moment Riku had called Braveheart to him.

Carefully, he aimed his keyblade, closed his eyes to feel for the memories that connected him and Sora. All the time they’d spent together. Even all the time they’d spent apart. Everything that was precious to them.

All of it called out to Sora, and in the space between them, Riku could have sworn he heard his best friend call his name in return. 

_“Riku!”_

“Isn’t this sweet?” 

In an instant, Riku knew they were once again, in trouble. 

He stilled, searched for the source, turned to Yozora when the regent snarled.

_“You!”_

“Me!” 

Riku spun, startled by the new voice, spotting a shadowed figure standing just at the roof’s edge. Even in the dark, Riku would have recognized the distinct form of a man wearing a black coat in any world. Even the man’s strangely jovial tone wasn’t enough to ward off the suspicion and dread that suddenly laid itself over the rooftop. Just as Yozora tensed, Riku felt himself falling into a familiar ready stance, placing himself between whoever this man was and Sora. 

The man in the coat strode forward with confidence, with purpose, with all the ease of someone who knew exactly what he was doing. For a moment, just a moment, Riku could imagine Ansem under that hood, felt his heart reeling at the thought, but he knew that wasn’t right. Ansem was gone. Xehanort was gone. Everyone from Organization XIII was gone. Whoever this was, he was someone they had never faced before.

Uncertainty made Riku hesitate just enough that he wasn’t in the way when Yozora suddenly summoned an astonishing display of lasers upon the figure. There were so many that the light blinded Riku, forced him to look away. There was no way anyone could have withstood the force of his attack.

And yet, when the light died down and Riku peered at the wreckage, he saw the figure striding forward, not having lost a step. 

Yozora snarled again, the silver and gold sword at his back swinging around to intercept the man as the regent ran forward to meet him. 

“Wait!” Riku called, but Yozora paid him no mind, attacking with abandon. Although Riku didn’t see the man in the coat do anything, none of his attacks seemed to be landing. 

Setting his teeth, Riku turned to Sora. While the two were distracted, he had a chance to free him and escape the world.

As soon as he raised Braveheart though, something crashed into Riku, knocking him forward, collapsing to the ground. It took him only a moment to realize that something had been Yozora, an oath of fury slipping from the regent’s mouth. Just like that, he was gone, dropping in and out of the nightmare once again. 

Riku scrambled to his feet, glanced to see where the man in the black coat was, found him much too close for comfort, hefting Braveheart up. Yozora appeared behind the man, an ethereal glow to his body. He was humming with an energy, a magic, that Riku was unfamiliar with. Whatever it may be, it gave the regent a sinister light that reminded Riku of the glowing red eyes of the nightmares he had fought along the city’s streets.

For as sinister as Yozora seemed, Riku couldn’t pay attention to him. He was focused instead on the man in the black coat. Whatever happened, he couldn’t let the man get any closer to Sora. Without knowing his intentions, he simply couldn’t risk anything happening. 

The man cast a glance over his shoulder to Yozora, but it was a passive movement, one of minimal interest. Although Riku could see no eyes under the darkness of the man’s hood, he felt a calculating gaze fall upon him, felt the weight of judgment. 

There was a beat of silence between the three. Riku was honestly surprised Yozora didn’t attack during that time, but when he chanced a glance at the regent, he realized there was blood running down the man’s arm. Somehow, he’d already been injured. This man had injured Yozora enough to make him bleed within the first moments of their battle, seemingly without moving, and all Riku had managed between two fights was a bit of a scorch mark.

_Who is he? What is he?_

The questions set him on edge. There was no time to ask or wonder over them either. Just as with Yozora, he simply had to hold his ground, protect Sora, do all he could to make sure they all made it out of whatever confrontation was coming. 

But the man in the black coat still hadn’t moved. He was looking closely at Riku, searching him. Riku stayed where he was, careful to watch for signs of an impending attack. Unwavering in his defense of Sora. He wouldn’t be moved. Not by anything. 

Then, the man’s hand flashed outward, Riku readying for an attack, until the man flicked his fingers outward in a waving gesture.

“Glad to know you still remember me,” he said slightly over his shoulder, Yozora growling in response. “And you found your mirror! For a second, I really thought you were just going to ignore my advice to you, but here you are! Making me look like a fool, aren’t you?”

“What are you doing here?” Yozora spat. 

“Oh, I was just taking a walk through the area. Saw the pretty light show and thought I’d check it out.”

It unnerved Riku more than he wanted to admit that this guy was talking to Yozora but refused to face the regent. If he looked hard enough, Riku swore the man’s eyes were firmly locked onto Braveheart, a little tilt of his head to indicate he was following when Riku shifted his stance slightly. 

“Are you the one who did this to Sora?!” Yozora was still yelling.

“Hmmm?” The man shrugged. “Why would you say that? And you make it sound like this is a bad thing. You want your world to be fixed, don’t you? Well, this is the first step.”

The man’s words made Riku pause, enough that he found his voice, “What are you talking about? Do you know what’s happened to this world?”

Even as Riku spoke, Yozora spat, “You’re just a madman! Look at what you’ve done!”

“Me? That’s rich.” For the first time, the man in the coat looked away from Riku, put a hand on his hip when addressing Yozora. “Have you even noticed what’s happened to your city as soon as you turned your back? Have you noticed it crumbling at the edges? The darkness seeping into everything you claim to know and love?”

A shiver overcame Yozora, so intense that his body seemed to rise up several inches, his eyes blown wide, his scowl dropping away. 

“I’ll take that as a no. Hey!” The man in the coat spun on Riku so quickly that he flinched. “That’s a sporting keyblade you have there. Where’d you get it?”

Riku stayed silent. Was he surprised this man knew what a keyblade was? Not really. Maybe he should have been. But he wasn’t surprised at all. 

When he didn’t react, the man continued on, unfazed by his silence, “Were you planning on using it to call upon your friend’s heart? Cause, if you were, I’d just like to say, that’s probably a bad idea.”

“Why’s that?” Riku shifted slightly, making sure his back was to Sora, made it clear to the man that if he wanted to get to Sora, he’d have to get past him first. 

The man shook his head. “And you’re supposed to be a keyblade wielder? Don’t they teach you kids anything nowadays?” He gave a sigh, but pointed in the crystal beyond Riku and what lay at its center. “The heart of a true keyblade wielder is a powerful thing. It can keep the deepest of darknesses at bay, for at least a short while. It can bring balance to places that have only seen turmoil and ruin. But mostly, it can serve as a beacon in a world falling apart at the edges. And when a keyblade wielder is in need of help, his heart reaches out to his companions. Ever noticed how keyblade wielders tend to flock together? Ever thought that was just a coincidence?” 

Riku tried to think back to what King Mickey and Master Yen Sid had ever taught him about being a keyblade wielder, but the man’s words didn’t sound familiar. Was he lying then? Did he really know nothing? And did that mean this man knew other keyblade wielders would come to this world? Had he been expecting them? _Wanting_ them to come? 

As if sensing his skepticism, the man gave a sweeping gesture. “Have you ever heard the phrase, ‘may your heart be your guiding key?’ ” Riku couldn’t help but to tense, the man chuckled when he did. “Right. Did you think it was just a little motivational saying? Something to whisper to yourself when the darkness closes in? Nope! It’s a bit of a riddle actually, but if you pay close enough attention, you can figure it out.”

“That’s enough!” 

Riku had nearly forgotten the regent was still there, that is, until his voice called out over the rooftop, angrier than ever. Still, the man in the coat did not turn to him.

The regent set his feet. “I’m going to stop you here and now! Whatever it takes!”

“Don’t you have bigger things to worry about than what’s happening on this roof?” 

“What?!” 

The man gave a sigh, threw his arms up in the air in exasperation. Slowly, he drew something out of his pocket, a small vaguely rectangular device that had several buttons on it. At the sight of it, Yozora narrowed his eyes.

“Where did you get—”

“We’re out of time,” when the man spoke, Riku somehow knew it was directly to him. “There’s a secret nobody wants to admit, something nobody ever wants to voice and it’s this simple fact: the light is its own worst enemy. After all, only the greatest of all lights can spawn the deepest, darkest shadows.” 

The man’s words settled around them, something Riku could not ignore, could not argue against. They fell like stones tossed into his stomach, made something like dread creep up his spine as the man twisted over his shoulder for the last time. 

“I happen to wander by the Boundary’s main generator site. Looked like people had started setting up for a journey of some kind? But there was a ton of dust everywhere. Was just about completely abandoned! Well, anyway, there was this cool truck thing. Key was still in the ignition and everything! Man! People can be careless, can’t they!”

Yozora looked more than a little panicked. “Give it back!”

“So demanding!” There came a cold edge to the man’s voice. He stared right at Riku and for a moment, Riku could imagine a smile, a secret shared between them, even if he didn’t quite know what that secret was. “Anyway, you want to watch what happens when an entire world turns over itself?”

There was nothing they could do to stop him. Riku only braced himself, watched as Yozora stepped, leaped a vast distance between one stride and the next.

But it was too late.

The man pushed a button, crushed the control, did something, and behind him, a flare of light overtook the horizon. It was so bright, so sudden, that Riku turned away, heard Yozora screaming, his voice full of agony. 

When he looked, Riku saw the vast ring of light that had encircled their horizon flicker, hold, then dim, and finally, fade away.

The shadows wavered, as if letting out a long-held breath, then rolled forward, consuming everything in their path.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not going to lie, I giggle every time I read MoM's little "Me!" after Yozora calls him out. 
> 
> We are SOOOOO close to the end! I'm a little sad, but I'm also pretty excited. THINGS ARE HAPPENING!!


	21. Conflict to Truth

There was still a scream ringing through the air, even as the light faded away and the shadow descended into the city. 

Reticles several times larger than the ones before appeared, lasers crashing into the building, shaking it to the core. The number zero creaked, snapped, fell in the shuddering. Riku glanced to Sora, but the crystal around him remained undamaged. 

When he turned back to the rooftop, the man in the coat stood, unfazed by Yozora’s attack, by the approaching shadow, by anything at all. He merely stood there, an imposing figure amongst all the chaos. 

Upon spying the man again, Riku saw as something snapped in Yozora. One last thread, one last hope. As the shadow came to swallow the city, its regent’s arms slumped in defeat, his knees trembling, threatening to give way. He didn’t move again, not even as the man walked right past him, stepping with the same confidence and ease with which he’d first stepped into the battle. 

Now, Riku alone stood to face him, knowing he was no match for him, not by himself.

He had to buy time. Think of a plan. Something. 

But there was no time left. The shadow was coming. It was going to consume everything.

_Xion! Roxas!_

The thought made Riku’s heart and limbs feel heavy. The other keyblade wielders were still fighting. They’d have no way of knowing their time was coming to an end. The shadow was going to come and end the nightmare, wiping this world from its own dream and tossing them into an unending darkness. 

_Sora!_

There was no time left. Even if it destroyed him, he had to free Sora, at least give him the chance to escape. Xion and Roxas were capable of figuring things out on their own at least. As he was, Sora was helpless. If it was the last thing he did, Riku had to save him before the darkness came to destroy them. 

But he had to wait. Take the moment his enemy least expected. Take the moment he would suspect an attack and use it to free Sora. Take any moment given to him to get out of there. It was his only chance. 

So Riku faced the man in the coat, held Braveheart ready, but kept his heart thinking of only Sora. 

“Ah, yes!” The man’s voice did not jar Riku as it had once before. Instead, he stood steady, refused to be moved by his antics. “Look at this! The picture of a true keyblade master. You’ve got that special shine in your eye, don’t you?”

Was it even worth trying to reason with him? He didn’t seem particularly interested in attacking. Even through all of Yozora’s attacks, he hadn’t struck back. What was his play here?

“Who are you?” It was a safe question. It bought him some time to think. 

In the distance, the shadow was rolling ever closer. 

The man seemed to consider Riku for a moment, then shrugged. “Couldn’t say anymore.” 

“You don’t remember your name?”

“It’s not about _remembering,”_ the man said with a dramatic sigh, as if this were obvious, “it’s about _knowing._ Do you _know_ who you are?” 

“Does that matter?” 

“It always matters for people like us.”

_People like us._

He was baiting the question.

Riku didn’t rise to it. 

Instead, he watched, waited. The man seemed to do the same for a heartbeat, then he glanced around, as if looking for something. Riku shifted his ankle, wondered if now was his opportunity, though he paused when the man turned back to him. 

“Didn’t you have… I don’t know, friends? With you? Or am I just dreaming about that?”

Still, Riku didn’t move. 

The man waited, sighed. “C’mon now. We’re running out of time. At least give me something to go on?” He tapped his chin when Riku didn’t move. “Oh! I know! Maybe if I make things a little dramatic, they’ll show up, huh?”

He lifted his hand, fingers vaguely curled, and Riku tensed, his mind racing, waiting for the right chance. 

It came when something flashed through the space between the two of them, nearly knocking into the man’s hand, something silver and covered in light and very familiar. Riku couldn’t help the small smile that spread over his face as he turned, spying both Roxas and Xion racing toward him. Their eyes went to Sora, widened in shock, but they both fell into a line beside Riku, Xion calling her keyblade back to her. 

“Yozora!” 

Across the roof, Riku spotted the two Roxas and Xion had been fighting, who he assumed must be the Aegis and Magia Taro had mentioned, hurry to the regent, who had collapsed on his knees. The one with the rapiers stood between him and the man in the coat while the one wielding a halberd crouched next to Yozora, shaking him urgently. 

“You okay?” Roxas said shortly.

Riku ignored his question. “We have to move, now! The shadow is coming!” 

“We noticed,” Xion snapped. “Do what you have to! We’ll cover you!” 

There were many questions Riku had. Chief among them was whether they were hurt, why had they come to the roof now, and what had happened between them and Aegis and Magia? But there was no time for that. 

Riku spun toward Sora, held Braveheart out, closed his eyes. Once more, he imagined all the things he knew of Sora, felt the swelling his chest at the memories, called out to him. A beam of light shot from the tip of his keyblade, catching Sora in his heart, light filling up his form. Slowly, it began trickling into the larger crystal. Riku kept calling for Sora, but the crystal remained, and Sora slept on.

Behind him, he grew more and more aware of Roxas and Xion protecting him, of them facing the man. He was more confident in their abilities to work as a team to hold him off, but Riku had a sinking suspicion that even together, they wouldn’t be much of a match for him. He had to work faster. 

Beyond their roof, he was also aware of the darkness, coming closer and closer. 

The man’s voice cut through Riku’s concentration, no matter how much he didn’t want to listen. “Well, isn’t this a moment,” he didn’t say it with his usual levity. Instead, there was something to his voice. Something different. Something dangerous. 

“Who are you supposed to be anyway?” Roxas asked. Also trying to buy time. Riku knew that wouldn’t work forever.

To his surprise though, the man chuckled. “When I was a little boy, there were monsters like you two. Monsters that only looked human.” Xion growled in indignation. Riku could almost _feel_ the fury rolling off of Roxas. “It seems my past has come to haunt me. And honestly, karma’s taken a long time to catch up.” 

There was a pause, a bit longer than a heartbeat. 

Then, “You, wielder of light and dark. Open a dark corridor for us or we’ll all be swallowed by the darkness.”

Roxas growled, Xion took a step forward. The man didn’t seem to notice. 

“You came here to save your friend. Well, your chance is running out. Best open it now and be ready for when the darkness closes in, because it’s almost here.” 

“Shut up!” Roxas snarled. “And stay back! We aren’t here to help you!”

Even before Roxas finished speaking, the man was laughing. His laugh dropped low, dangerous, to something very different than the jovial tone he’d had just moments earlier. “Oh, but aren’t you?”

Even concentrating as he was, Riku still felt the pull of the threads of the dream around him. He knew it enough that as the crystal was started to crackle with light, he glanced beside him, and the man blinked into existence. 

A hand gripped his wrist. 

For nearly every fight Riku had been in, he’d grown to know pain better than most, more than he’d ever anticipated when he’d told his best friends he wanted to sail away and see other worlds. Both physical and mental pain was something he’d come to know. So pain was what he expected.

What he felt instead was an overwhelming _nothing._

From the hand on his wrist was a void of anything, just a touch, nothing behind it. It was a writhing, cold thing. Something that crawled up his hand, into his fingers. He trembled. His keyblade wavered.

And just like that, it vanished. 

Riku saw as its light scattered, felt as his mind slipped away, as his will to fight faded. 

He heard a shout. His name. The voice was familiar. Somehow, he knew it was Roxas’s voice, but he heard it coming from another place, another person.

_Sora…_

With a gasp, Riku blinked, realized he was on his knees, his arm wrenched behind him, a palm in his back. When he tried to twist away, a sharp pain shot up along his arm and side, a gasp escaping before he could stop it. 

“Riku!” He heard Xion’s voice, heard as she and Roxas readied their keyblades, but when they did, his arm was twisted even more, Riku grinding his teeth to keep from crying out. 

Above him, he could feel the man press forward. “If you don’t act now, then we will all disappear. Hurry up! The darkness is closing in!”

With what little time they had left, Riku knew there was only one chance. 

He looked up and shouted, “Roxas! Xion! Just go!” He couldn’t leave Sora behind, but he couldn’t watch his friends disappear. Best they get back to Radiant Garden, tell everyone what had happened. Live to fight another day. Return to Axel. They’d promised Axel they would come back. And they’d already given up so much to come with him, had risked separation after so much heartache. They had lives to live out, live to continue, lives worth living. 

But neither of them moved. Xion stood resolute, the look in her eye speaking only to how she was trying to puzzle out how to win, how to stop all that was happening. Although Roxas stood next to her, Riku had to admit he’d never seen the other keyblade wielder look so uncertain. His eyes kept glancing to Sora, then to Riku and the cloaked man. Was Riku only imagining the slight quiver to his keyblades?

“C’mon now!” Riku felt the hand on his back leave, felt the man shift slightly. “Do you hear it? The roar of a thousand bad dreams, the concentration of so many worlds’ darkest thoughts. Do you know what that will do to us? Do you want to fade into an even worse nightmare?” 

“What are you even talking about?!” Xion shouted. “Let our friends go!”

There was a moment of pause. Between Xion’s words and when the man spoke again, Riku heard the rising sound of the shadow closing in, a slight rumble, a groan in the far distance. A wind caught along the roof, tugged at their clothes. Nobody paid it any mind, but Riku cast a glance to the shadow, then to Sora, still unmoving, still crystalized, still trapped. 

His eyes then fell to Yozora and his companions, but they were standing back, watching the altercation. Yozora’s head still hung with defeat.

“I suppose,” the man’s voice broke the silence like a rumble of thunder, “we have time for one story. But only one!” 

Riku grunted when the man twisted his arm a little more, forced him farther onto his knees. When he looked up, he caught a shock of fear in Roxas’s eyes quickly wiped away with a growl as both he and Xion faced the black cloaked man.

“Once upon a time,” the man spoke in a cheery tone, as if to children, “there was a gifted little boy. He had a very special ability, one that made people turn and acknowledge him. Even his world itself bent to listen to him when he spoke.”

As the man spoke, Riku had a sinking suspicion he knew exactly who the man was speaking of. 

“Unfortunately, the darkness came to his world. It ate it up, twisted it up, nearly cast all its inhabitants away. At the very last moment, the world’s sky opened up and a heart-shaped moon shone through the darkness.”

The man paused. It was a long, heavy silence, one so strange that Riku chancing a glance up. The man’s gaze was up toward the sky. With the shadow closing in, all that was left above them was the dimming stormy clouds, their only solace short, sharp bursts of lightening. 

Xion flinched forward suddenly, her keyblade flashing, and Riku recoiled as pain twisted up his side. 

“Hey, now! Story’s not over yet! Don’t you want to know what happened to that little boy?” 

“Get on with it or let him go!” Roxas shouted. “I’m tired of being played with.”

To this, the man let out a throaty laugh. _“You’re_ tired?” He shrugged, adjusted his grip on Riku’s wrist. Riku tried to pull away with little success. When he glanced up, he caught another look from Roxas, something conspiratorial. He was glancing to his side, seemingly trying to catch Aegis and Magia’s attention. Before Riku could understand just what the other keyblade wielder was planning, the man continued. 

“I’m sure you’ve heard the story about there being one sky, one destiny, for all worlds? Well that’s not quite true. Because you see, here, in this world, our sky is very different from the one the little boy used to live under. When the heart-shaped moon appeared above his head that night, the world turned itself over, slipped away from its kin, descending into its dreams. And there it slept, for a long, long time.

“Soon enough, the little boy wasn’t a little boy anymore. He was something so much more. And as he grew up, twisted by the world’s dreams, his powers grew. Soon enough, he became a conduit of the world itself. Able to twist its reality as easily as someone may change their dreams. When he called to the world, it answered to him, opened a door that nobody should have ever opened.”

For the first time since collapsing, Riku saw Yozora raise his head. His companions closed in around him, but Yozora’s gaze was suddenly fixed on the cloaked man as his story went on. 

“In time, the day came when the world called forth a champion of light. Someone who wielded a very special weapon, someone who could call the world from its brink. Instead of embracing the help, the boy, who was no longer just a little boy, faced this champion. He drove the champion from his world, held his world and everyone in it trapped in their own dreams. Unable to wake, the world soon started to sink into nightmares.

“More champions were called to this world, until there were no more to call to, until they were all driven away. As more champions came to the world, and the no longer little boy drove them away, the more connected this world became to other worlds. The more who came to help, the more they brought with them the nightmares of the other worlds they had visited. Soon enough, this world began calling forth all the nightmares of all the worlds. When that happened, the champions no longer came. They forgot about this world, left it to rot, unable to reach it, assuming it would one day be consumed by its own darkness.” 

The more the man spoke, the more Riku watched Yozora’s reaction, knowing what was coming.

The regent’s expression was already one of dismay and despair, but the longer the story went on, the more recognition and disbelief crowded away everything else. Even his companions paused to listen, awe and dread sinking through their faces. Yozora tentatively stood, but didn’t seem capable of moving any farther as the truth of the man’s story washed over him.

_“But,”_ the sharp note of the man’s voice seemed to snap through the silence between all those gathered on that roof, “just as this world called nightmares to it, it called the lost, the wounded, those tossed aside by the rest of the worlds. Perhaps it was to act as a way to reach for redemption. Perhaps it was simply a method of making all those problematic to the other worlds disappear. Either way, here we all are. At the mercy of a world that is being eaten alive by the nightmares of all the worlds and held captive by a sad, lonely, scared little boy.” 

A snarl hissed its way over the roof, Yozora once again standing against the man. “You’re _lying!”_

The man turned toward him, considered him. A low, not quite sinister chuckle floated over the roof. “In this world, if that’s what you want to believe, then I suppose it’s true.” He turned back to the keyblade wielders. “Do you understand now? Some of us were called here as punishment or penance or redemption, but most of the people here are simply aching to be woken from a terrible dream. I’ve just done my part in achieving that end. And so has Sora! Now you should do yours.” He raised his hand. “Open the path back to the light, but hurry! We’re running out of time!”

At the mention of time, Riku cast a glance out toward the shadow, felt his stomach drop as he saw it was closing in rapidly. 

“Roxas! Go! Take Xion and run!” He called, but as he did, the man twisted his arm and he let out a cry.

“You aren’t going to just abandon your friend, are you? And what about Sora? He’ll disappear into the nightmares if you leave him.” 

“It’s too late for us!” Riku called, felt his heart shuddering at the truth of just how hopeless it was. He and Sora were already lost. But he had to hold strong, especially when he looked up, especially when he saw Roxas’s eyes shining in conflict. 

Even if they weren’t friends, Riku knew Roxas. He knew the hurt he had suffered. The loss, the pain. When he’d returned to existnece, it had been with triumph, with a conviction of never losing what he cared for. And here he stood, facing the possibility of losing everything once again. 

But the roaring of the shadow was closing in. It presented as a wall of darkness, a swirling mass of nightmare. It was something very different now than what the keyblade wielders had witnessed when dropped into this world. The nightmares had gained power as they consumed what was left of this world and its people. With nothing to hold it back, it was simply eating everything in its path, converging toward that roof, toward them. But it wasn’t too late. Not for all of them.

“GO!” Riku shouted, then he screamed as the nothing burning along his wrist, tore at his body and battered against his heart.

“I’ll destroy them both,” the man said simply as Riku convulsed. 

He snarled, looked up, tried to catch Roxas’s eyes once more, saw only a flash of fire, felt the relief when his wrist was released. 

Several things happened all at once, though Riku’s vision swam around each of them as the lingering pain made him lightheaded. 

He could hear the roaring of the shadow, the screams of nightmares, the shrieks of a world falling apart, but beyond it, he heard a voice crying out in defiance. More over, he heard Xion and Roxas shout, felt their light scorch the ground nearby, felt a hand on his back, something that kept him grounded, something that told him the fight wasn’t over. 

When the blackness faded and Riku raised his head to the battle, he first saw Yozora standing at the center of the roof, arms held out, a flickering, red light racing all along his body, flowing outward. It crashed into the shadows, twisting them into a funnel around them, keeping it at bay. The red energy flickered like lightening, arching all along the nightmares. Yozora’s mouth was twisted into a line of determination, his eyes blazing open with that same red energy he wielded. 

Somehow, Riku found it beautiful. He supposed it wasn’t surprising to see Yozora twisting his world’s nightmares, at his sheer strength of will. What was surprising to see just how his eyes blazed, how he refused to back down, how after all that had happened, he stood resolute. 

This was his final stand. His last wish before waking. And just what laid beyond his nightmare, Riku didn’t know. But he knew they had to take advantage while his will held strong.

Across the rest of the roof, Xion and Roxas were standing next to Aegis and Magia, having driven the cloaked man away from Sora and his crystal. Riku rushed to stand next to them, summoning Braveheart, but a hand thrust in his path stopped him. 

“Magia and I will hold him off. You have to leave, right? Leave this to us!” Aegis shouted. 

“Yozora will hold the shadow off as long as he can. Please don’t make him strain any longer than necessary.” Magia said sharply, then he pointed at Riku. “And take Sora with you! Everyone will be supremely unhappy if he disappears! Especially Yozora! He will be extremely disappointed if he did all of this and you didn’t manage to get Sora out in time!” 

“Take care of him for us,” Aegis added. “Do better for him than we did.”

Riku paused, glanced to Xion and Roxas. The two were looking at him for direction, but there remained a question mark. Xion kept looking between the cloaked man and Sora, ultimately swayed by her need to help and, although calmed now that Riku was not in immediate danger, Roxas seemed unwilling to just leave them behind. 

But they couldn’t wait any longer. 

“Roxas, go,” Riku said. “Sora and I will follow you two.” 

“No! We came to this world together, we’ll leave it together!” Xion readied her keyblade, Roxas doing the same.

“Right! Besides, what if you need us?”

“We’ll help!” 

The two took a step forward, but Riku stepped into their path. He met each of their gazes, shook his head. “Axel is waiting for you.” Hurt and worry crossed both their face, Xion glancing to Roxas with a bit more fear in her eyes than the other keyblade wielder. Riku knew what they must be thinking, knew that this wasn’t the right place for them to be. He gestured them onward. “Go. We’ll be right behind you. Pave the way for us.”

Again, Roxas glanced to him. Just as before, there came a conspiratorial look to his eyes, Riku nodding when he saw it. He had this handled. Xion and Roxas had done everything they could to help him. It wasn’t time for them to sacrifice anything else. 

“Hurry up!” The strained plea came from Yozora, whose knees were starting to buckle. The roar of the darkness swirling around them was nearly deafening. 

Maybe it was Yozora’s request or Riku’s nod, but either way, Roxas turned, held Oathkeeper up, and there came a pinch in the world, a small twist that expanded out, until there came a tear in the world and a tunnel of darkness lay before them. 

“You better be right behind us!” Roxas shouted, nodded for Xion to go. She cast one more glance to Sora, then to Riku. Then, she smiled, pressed a hand to her heart. A small gesture, but it meant so much more than Riku knew the words for. 

She was saying she had faith, that she knew he would be okay. And that if he wasn’t, her heart would be with him, no matter the outcome. 

And with that, she ducked into the corridor, disappeared from this nightmare. Roxas paused a heartbeat longer, glared after Riku, then followed. The corridor remained, waiting. Riku knew it would stay until he and Sora came back home.

He turned, raised Braveheart, was aware as Yozora’s companions closed in on the cloaked man, but he let it all fade away. 

He thought instead of Sora, let his heart lead his way. 

Unlike the first time, when he reached forward, he felt something reach back.

When his light cast through Braveheart and into the crystal, it was to a brilliant display, to a light that filled the little corner of their world left. From that light, there came a stillness, a silence, a warmth so welcome amidst the chaos swirling around them. It was a familiar feeling, something that settled in his bones and had his heart swelling with joy. When Riku opened his eyes, slowly, languid, as if waking up from a bad dream, he saw that light crowding up the crystal surrounding Sora, surging into his body, felt as a heart began to beat again. 

A scream pierced through the tranquility, jarring enough that Riku turned. He saw as two figures were cast off the roof and disappeared into the shadow, swallowed whole. Saw as Yozora suddenly collapsed to his knees, then to his side. Watched as his body seemed to waver, then be swallowed into shadows.

And the darkness surged forward. 

When Riku looked up, it was to nothing, it was to an emptiness, to a nightmare so deep there was no bottom.

Over the screaming of a thousand painful memories, Riku did hear the shattering of something like glass, something stronger, something that set his heart fluttering. 

_“RIKU!”_

The sound of his name was so much more than just a word. It was a summon. A spell. A call from something missing for so long.

As the darkness closed in, something crashed into Riku, something that wrapped him in light, in warmth, in something he’d forgotten.

The darkness that twisted around them was familiar, if not a little cold. Riku had traveled through enough dark corridors to recognize its claustrophobic confines, but this one was spiraling, quickly racing out of control. The darkness was tearing itself apart, and them along with it. Darkness ate at his limbs, tore at his heart. Riku clung to the last wisps of light next to him, wondered if this was going to be the end.

But, even if it was the end, he was happy to see it. At least at the end, he had his light, his warmth, his heart nestled beside him.

The darkness swelled, twisted, and swallowed him whole.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only one more wrap-up chapter!!! I can't believe we're already here. But what a journey it's been!


	22. Truth to Waking

Waking was a strange sensation. 

He didn’t know why. Maybe it was the fact that he had been wandering a dream for too long. Maybe because the last memories he had must have come from a dream. Maybe it was the completely foreign familiarity of the air around him. 

How long had it been since he’d opened his eyes and seen something he recognized? Not very long in the grand scheme of things, but somehow, he knew that so many things were different, so much so that even this familiar ceiling was one that had changed since he’d last seen it. 

Still, different or familiar, he took a moment to appreciate that ceiling. One of twisting wires and pipes, of machinery he didn’t quite understand, of a history long steeped in both light and darkness. Radiant Garden wasn’t a world Riku had ever thought of as comforting. And yet, in that moment, there wasn’t anywhere else he’d want to be.

“Hey. You finally awake?”

The voice called Riku’s attention, brought his gaze to a pair of crystal blue eyes, an eyebrow raised. 

Roxas smirked, but not unkindly. “About time. Xion was getting worried.”

“So were you!” Xion was crouched next to Roxas. How Riku had missed her standing there had him briefly confused, though he was brought back when Roxas scoffed. 

“Was not. I knew he’d be fine.”

“Oh, you were sweating it, Roxas. Just admit it.” Above them stood Axel, smiling down at him. 

Roxas crossed his arms and turned his nose up, but ultimately, his expression dropped back into a grin. He rose to his feet, offered his hand to Riku. “C’mon! The others are waiting for you.”

Riku stared forward, still trying to wrap his head around what was happening, what _had_ happened. “Are you two okay?”

“Course! You were the one we were waiting on. Kept us waiting long enough. C’mon, get up!” 

Roxas held out his hand a little more. This time, Riku took it, smiled when Xion offered hers and took it as well. Together, the two pulled him to his feet, sharing his smile. 

“What happened to you two? Did you convince Aegis and Magia not to fight?”

“Is that who those two were?” Roxas shrugged. “I think we all seemed to realize we were fighting for the same side. That somehow, we’d gotten what we were really doing there all mixed up.”

“Then we all felt this… power,” Xion glanced to Roxas, for the first time, both no longer smiling. “Anyway, we all just looked at each other and knew we had to get up to that roof to save you guys.”

“You didn’t say anything to them?” Riku pressed, but the keyblade wielders shook their head. It was a bit strange, he supposed, but he’d seen stranger. 

If they had been fighting for the same thing, then perhaps their hearts had linked, had realized they were allies after all, that raising their weapons against one another wasn’t serving their purpose. Or maybe it was something entirely different. The dream world had twisted so much of what Riku knew, time, space, his friends. Could they even trust anything they’d seen while there? 

Maybe it was useless to try to seek those answers. Maybe it didn’t really matter. 

What did matter was Xion and Roxas were standing in front of him, back home and well, with Axel at their side. Riku smiled between the two of them, let himself sigh in relief. 

At least he had seen this to its end. At least they’d gotten back home. 

Xion tipped her head slightly. “You sure you’re okay?”

Riku considered her, considered himself. Was he okay? He supposed. Nothing hurt save for a slight tingling in his hand, left over from the cloaked man’s grip. Even his heart seemed lighter than it had been in so long. 

His heart….

With a jolt, Riku swept the room, saw he was alone with the trio in an unfamiliar room of Ansem’s castle. 

“Sora!” He gasped, pausing when Roxas snorted.

“There it is.” He grinned to Axel and Xion, who laughed as well. “Seriously, you were scaring us. We thought he was going to be the first person you worried about.”

“Is he all right? Did he make it?” Riku scrambled to remember if he’d brought Sora with him. Except… he didn’t remember Sora being with him when he’d gone through the corridor. In fact, he didn’t remember going through the corridor at all. His memories of the last moments in the dreaming world were faded, slipped through his fingers when he reached for them. Just what had happened? How had he ended up back in Radiant Garden alive and in one piece? 

When he turned to the others for answers, they were still grinning at him. Roxas nodded to the door, closed and unimposing, though the sight of it made Riku’s stomach drop. “The others are waiting for you.”

The news didn’t settle well with him, especially the vagueness of it. Roxas had made no mention of Sora. So had he not made it? Then again, if Sora had been caught in the fading world, Riku couldn’t imagine Roxas could be smiling so widely at him. 

As much as he wanted answers, Riku found his feet wouldn’t move quite yet. Instead, he faced Roxas, Xion, and Axel. Saw them reunited, standing side by side, right where they belonged. Ready for whatever adventures were waiting for them. As long as they were together. 

Words came to Riku’s tongue, but he found them hard to say. How could he thank them for what they had done? For all that had happened? Tell them sorry for his failures, his faults? Words didn’t seem enough.

Even as he reached for something to say, he was surprised by a hand on his shoulder. Roxas’s grip was sturdy, but reassuring. When he smiled, it was with Sora’s smile. An invitation. An acceptance. Maybe it wasn’t a forgiveness, but it was more than just one step forward. 

Riku smiled as well, felt it come easily to his lips, pressed a hand over Roxas’s, saw a similar smile on Xion’s face. They’d made it through and here they were. 

_Friends._

Only Axel rolled his eyes playfully. “Well? You just going to hang out with us or are you going to get going?”

And that was all that needed to be said. 

\- - -

The castle of Radiant Garden was a labyrinth of twisting hallways and strange rooms that put the Land of Departure to shame. Unlike the Land of Departure, Riku didn’t have the added benefit of naturally knowing his way through that maze. So he wandered the halls until familiar sights brought him to the door into Ansem’s study, which he paused only briefly at to breathe before knocking. 

The alarming sound of rushing, stomping footsteps crashed right up to the door, which was flung open with enough force that Riku blinked and took a step back, somehow bracing himself for the full weight of someone crashing into him. 

_“Riku!”_

It was a familiar shout, a voice that had called to him so many times before. But this was so different from any of those other times. Even after everything they had gone through, the hardships and joys, the long times apart and their adventures together, nothing could have prepared Riku for this moment. However long he had dreamed of the moment, however many times he’d stared out a window and imagined what it would be like, it was nothing to the arms slung around his shoulders, a head tucked into the crook of his neck. 

“Is that really you?”

Somehow, they were the words he was thinking, though it was not his voice that sounded them. The thought made him laugh. Even that strange, as if out of place. 

What felt right was his arms sliding around shoulders he knew, the light laugh that pressed against his skin, the feeling of a heartbeat that settled so naturally against his own. 

Riku couldn’t look. Somehow, he knew if he did, it would break the illusion. Just as he kept his head down, he felt a forehead pressed against his shoulder, fingers tightening on his back. 

“It’s really me,” he said, quiet, the space between them small, yet not quite small enough. “Is it you?”

“Ha!” Very suddenly, his arms were empty, there was someone standing in front of him, all wide smiles and radiant light. “Who’d you think it was?”

For the first time, Riku let himself really take in who was standing before, truly saw for the first time in over a year, his best friend. It felt like it had been so much longer than just a year since he’d last seen Sora, but somehow, he looked exactly as he had. It were as if Riku had simply woken from a terrible dream, had only imagined all those lonely days wandering the Land of Departure, had only thought he’d endured so many doubtful moments, so many days where his heart ached unconsolably for something that was no longer his. 

In an instant, with a single look, all of it was gone. Because Sora was here. He was here and he was awake and he was smiling. As if nothing had happened at all. 

At any other time, Riku may have come up with something funny to say, some rebuttal to Sora’s question, but he found those words didn’t belong in this moment and the words that did weren’t enough to express just what he was feeling.

So instead, he smiled, and he relaxed when Sora smiled back.

“Ah! You’re awake!”

The voice startled Riku just as much as Sora’s sudden appearance had. Kairi stepped from Ansem’s study, flipping a loose strand behind her ear. And just like Sora, she came and she stood in front of him as if not a day had passed since they’d all been together. 

“You’re looking happy,” she said, coming to stand beside Sora. 

Sora pumped his fists giddily. “Someone mark the day. Riku’s never looks this happy.”

And they were right of course. He had never been this happy before. His two best friends were standing in front of him, filling those long-aching voids at his side, smiling and joking like they always did, as if nothing had happened. 

Nothing had changed. They were still Sora and Kairi. Even after all the time, all that had happened, they were still themselves and they were going to remain as such.

Riku opened his mouth, tried to laugh, but when he did, both Sora and Kairi frowned, rushing to him. “Why are you crying?” Sora asked while Kairi simply took his hand, rubbed his palm, offered him all the comfort her presence always had before. 

Where words failed him, Riku knew they would pick up the pieces. And so, he wrapped his arms around them, drew them in closer, allowed himself a moment when he wept on their shoulders.

A moment when he remembered what home felt like.

\- - -

Ansem, Ienzo, and Even were particularly puzzled by Sora’s state upon returning. It seemed he didn’t remember much, that all he had were what felt like the remnants of a good dream. Although it clearly bothered Sora not to remember all that had happened to him since his disappearance, he would turn to Riku and Kairi and he would smile and everything would seem okay. Maybe they were just fooling themselves or maybe, given some time, it would be okay. The fact remained, everyone was so happy to have Sora back that they didn’t question him long. 

Ventus, Aqua, Terra, Donald, Goofy, and the King had all returned safe and well from the Realm of Darkness and had been in the Realm of Light waiting for the trio. They each congratulated Riku, Xion, and Roxas on a job well done, with the King catching Riku’s eye for a private moment, a proud nod, an acknowledgement between them that his journey had not been easy, but that he had preserved in the end, just as the King knew he would. 

Riku apologized to Terra for leaving the Land of Departure to find Sora, though Terra only said he had done a great job since their absence. Sora had already reunited with everyone, though Donald and Goofy stuck particularly close to him. As Donald quite plainly said, neither trusted him not to do something reckless again, to which Sora only laughed, making no promises. 

It was a wonder, seeing everyone together again. It had been a long time since they’d all stood together, something more than just friends. Together, they were home, family. They were everything each other could have ever asked for. 

And they were all reunited again. 

The only person who didn’t make an obvious appearance was Naminé. Riku looked for her, but when the girl didn’t show, he wandered to the back of Ansem’s computer room, found her in her room, drawing. 

She glanced up at him when he first entered, but didn’t acknowledge him otherwise. Instead, she focused on her work. Riku peered curiously over her shoulder as he had done not so long ago and found her sketching out something that looked vaguely like Yozora and his two companions, standing on a roof. Yozora was knelt on the ground, his companions stood over him. The familiar sight sent a shiver down Riku’s spine. 

Having noticed, Naminé giggle. “You’ve never been one to be creeped out by my drawings before.”

Riku considered her carefully. “Why would I be creeped out?”

She gave a noncommittal shrug. “It’s a little weird, don’t you think?”

“No,” Riku glanced to the other drawings around her, realized she had sketched out many of the events he, Xion, and Roxas had all gone through. “Anyway, I wanted to thank you. For what you said to me before I left. For trusting me.”

To this, Naminé shook her head. “It wasn’t my faith that brought you through. It was your own faith in yourself.”

“I’m afraid if that were true, we wouldn’t have been successful.” He paused when Naminé frowned at him. “I, uh, also wanted to ask why you hadn’t come to say hello to everyone. I’m sure they’re missing you.”

It was the girl’s turn to consider him, a smile tugging at her lips. “I don’t think so. Although maybe I should say hello. I did hear Terra and the others have returned.”

“How long have they been here?” He didn’t know why, but Riku had just assumed they’d been there all along, waiting for him, Xion, and Roxas to return. 

Naminé shrugged. “Couple of hours maybe.” Riku blinked at the news, though his attention was quickly pulled away when a frown caught on Naminé’s face and she looked away from him. 

He paused, but when she said nothing, he asked, “What’s wrong? You look sad.”

“I’m not sad. It’s just…,” she bit her lip. 

A beat of silence passed between them. Riku let the silence go, let Naminé collect herself, didn’t question her when she suddenly began pushing her sketches aside, eventually revealing one which she offered to Riku. Riku examined the sketch, quickly realized it was one of Yozora. His distinctive red and blue eyes were marked out. 

“This is someone we met in the other world,” Riku said, to which Naminé shook her head. 

“That’s what’s been bothering me,” she whispered, drew her hands together, fingers intertwined. “I… I know it looks like the man from the world you went to, but… I don’t think it is.”

Riku blinked at her. “Well… who else would it be?”

“I don’t know,” Naminé bit her lip, then suddenly looked up at Riku, eyes blazing fiercely. Riku let himself be taken in by her determined glare, by the sudden conviction with which she stood before him. There had been a time when she had been meek and afraid and lonely. 

She wasn’t that girl anymore.

She faced him, something shining in her eyes, though what it was, Riku couldn't name. "My power works through connections, as you know, Riku. The threads of memory that bind a person together." She glanced down at the picture. "But what happens to a heart if you break all the threads connecting it to others? What if you found a way to severe all ties from each other's hearts? What would it do to you?"

Riku had no answer. The thought of a heart without connections was impossible. Everyone was connected to _somebody._ Weren't they? How could someone even break so many connections to a heart? 

And yet, if Naminé was asking, then it had to be something that was bothering her. Of all the others in that castle, she would know if someone's connections were broken. She would be the only one to know. Even if she didn't know the consequences of such an action. Riku felt a chill running up his spine at the very thought. To be torn apart from everything he knew? It might shatter him.

What had happened to the heart that Naminé had sensed?

“Riku, please be careful. I don’t quite know what’s going on but…,” she shook her head, a slow, calculated movement, “I don’t trust it.”

For all the time Riku had known Naminé, he had known her words to be wise. Her warning shook him deeply, to something farther that his very heart. Whatever she had sensed, whatever she had foreseen, it was something to take seriously. A threat was looming.

When Riku looked at the drawing, he felt a bit of a chill overtake him, but he knew it was only steeling him for what was to come.

\- - -

It was a rare thing for Riku to witness Radiant Garden at night. Lights shone all along the town, streets lit up below him, a small hum of contented noise reaching his perch from a castle balcony. 

He sat at its precipice, having worn himself out with all the cheer of being with friends again. He’d even shared several jokes with Roxas, who, though cautious, was certainly reexamining that line they had staked so long ago. Riku was more than willing to move it, he was simply waiting for the other to tell him it was okay. This felt like a first step toward that. Or maybe, he’d taken a couple steps already and forgotten he was on the right path. Either way, he was happy with the progress. 

Mostly though, he’d been in utter joy and relief to watch Sora mingle amongst their friends. To watch as he stayed, as his form didn’t waver away as Riku so desperately feared it would. He wasn’t a mirage, he wasn’t an afterimage, he wasn’t a dream Riku was soon to wake from. He stayed and he smiled and he was home. 

He was home.

As much as Riku enjoyed being with his friends again, the fact remained that he had also just returned from a harrowing experience in the face of being beaten by not one but two people. Both Yozora and the man in the cloak had proven far too much for him to handle, no matter his will, his drive, his stubborn determination. There was a small, scared part of him that said it was proof that when the time came, he simply wasn’t going to be enough. That small part of him was growing. It was nagging at him, telling him over and over again that this peaceful, happy moment, where everyone could pretend everything was okay, would never last. There might not be a next time because he might not be strong enough to secure a next time. Next time might be slipping through his fingers even as he sat there, watching the city sleeping below him. 

“There you are.”

Perhaps Riku shouldn’t have been so surprised by the voice that called to him, but after silence for so long, he still was. When he looked up, Sora came forward, took a seat next to him, a smile his only greeting before he gazed out over the same streets Riku had been watching. 

They said nothing else to each other. Just sat side by side and enjoyed the moment.

That is, until a hand pressed over Riku’s. Until he looked up and saw that there was a shine to Sora’s eyes. Until he realized he wasn’t the only one who was hurting because of what had happened. That the hand reaching out to him wasn’t just for his benefit. It was also a plea, a request, a small voice that asked for him to reach back.

Without hesitation, Riku took Sora’s hand, squeezed it tightly. He was rewarded with a smile, one that joyful but subdued, a quiet, peaceful sort of smile. But it was enough. Everything about Sora was more than enough.

So when Sora leaned to rest his head on Riku’s shoulder, he slumped slightly to let him, rested his head against Sora’s, closed his eyes. Imagined their hearts beating as one. 

Knew that everything was right, if only for this one moment.

\- - -

A keyblade had always fit in his hand. So much so that it was almost strange to wield one again. 

Not that he complained. This was all part of a larger scheme, after all. There were many things he could, and had, complained over, but this small, funny little thing wasn’t one of them. 

What he wanted to complain about most in that moment was just how empty the wastes around him were. How many times had he stood in this spot, not so far from the fated grounds of the Keyblade Graveyard, had watched and seen the worlds turn over and over, as they always did. And yet, it never changed. Not here at least.

What a strange, stubborn world.

Of all the names known to him, it was the call of his long-lost name that drew his attention, that signaled to him he was finally no longer alone.

“Luxu.”

When he turned, he wasn’t exactly sure what to expect. Whatever had been in his mind, it didn’t match up to the young man who walked calmly toward him, an air of ease and defiance about him. Luxu examined him closely, marked him by his eyes, two different colors.

One red, one blue.

_Weird._

When was he going to finally get over the strangeness of all of this? Everything about what had happened before and was happening now was strange. And yet, he still found himself saying it every time.

“You lost or something?” Luxu called. 

The young man paused several yards from him. He looked closely at Luxu, his gaze eventually falling to the keyblade in his hand. Luxu tightened his grip, felt a wave of possessiveness crowd over him, though he pushed it aside as he faced the young man.

“Need something or what?” He asked, then paused when the young man carefully placed his hands behind his back. 

The movement itself wasn’t unusual, not something one would pick out amongst all the other movements a body may make in any given day. And yet, there was something about this, something about how smooth it was, something about how wrong the sight was, as if the movement and the body didn’t belong.

_He called me by my real name._

That should have given him the first clue. But he just hadn’t expected this. Not after so long. Maybe it was stupid to expect the same face from so long ago. After all, his face was very different from the one he had worn long ago. Why should this be any different?

Still, Luxu didn’t allow himself to believe it, not entirely, not until he carefully said, “Master?”

Not until he watched as the young man smiled, a wry curl of his lips.

\- - -

Yozora woke to a sky full of stars and the cool touch of water beneath his hands. 

How many times now had he woken to this? Had there even ever been anything before this? How long had he wandered? How long had he slept?

And yet, as he had done countless times before, Yozora carefully sat up, then pushed himself to his feet and began walking.

The thought crossed his mind, a wonder, a resignation, as he thought of what he would face that evening. He had long come to expect the trials of this place, to know that his presence here would not come without adversary. He had walked this place for so long, yet nothing here seemed to accept that this was where he was meant to walk.

_Maybe I was never meant to walk these paths._ When Yozora looked up, it was to a sky he knew so well, yet felt so small and insignificant to the one he must have known before. 

Because there had to have been a before, hadn’t there? 

Hadn’t there?

What remained of him, he didn’t know. This place was breaking him apart, he knew. He knew so little of himself, a name, a few scattered memories that felt more like dreams. An order told to him over and over again.

_Save Sora._

_You must save Sora._

_Save him._

_No matter what._

The words should not have meant anything to him anymore. Yet, they were all that remained to him in this place. No matter how many times he had woken in the same place, those words always remained.

This place had taken from him, he knew, and in the taking it had changed him. He knew that, if there had been a before, he had wielded a sword and a crossbow, maybe more, but what he wielded now were not exactly what he had wielded before. They were like imitations, something plucked from his mind and made real in this endless sea. When he called for them, they came in patterns of blood-red light, they moved with him in battle, they acted as he wished and willed but never as they should have. It had taken him this long to grow used to how they worked, to how they could be used to defeat enemies and defend himself. And yet, he still yearned for what he knew he missed. 

What he knew must have come before.

Because there had to be a before, didn’t there?

Didn’t there?

Yozora walked. As he had before.

He walked on and on.

He walked, until he heard something. Something that made him pause, made him raise his eyes to the ever-expanding horizon. When he looked, he saw nothing. Nothing he had not seen previously.

But when he listened, he heard a voice call out to him.

“Hey,” he called back, paused. When he heard nothing, he tried again. “Hey!”

Again, he waited, waited for what he knew must be his next trial. When the voice called to him again, he walked to meet it.

“Where are you?” He asked.

“Over here!” The voice called back.

Was it a familiar voice? No. It couldn’t be.

Just at the horizon, he saw something. Something coming closer and closer.

“I see you,” he said, and he walked to meet his fate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys, we are at the end. It's a little bittersweet, honestly.
> 
> I know some of you may be upset cuz there's not clear 100% answers for everything, but this is Kingdom Hearts! If we had all the answers, I would be suspect of it being related to the story at all =P You're welcome to interpret the ending in any which way you'd like. Let me know your theories! 
> 
> Anyway, thank you guys so much for going on this journey with me. It's been an incredible time. 
> 
> Cheers~

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed! 
> 
> Tell me what you think, what you want to see, what surprised you. I'd love to hear from you all! 
> 
> Cheers~


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